


Secrets to Success

by NoRagrets



Category: Carmilla (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe- No Supernatural, Boss/Employee Relationship, Eventual Smut, F/F, Interns & Internships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-17
Updated: 2016-10-16
Packaged: 2018-06-02 22:23:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 46,231
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6584959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NoRagrets/pseuds/NoRagrets
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Carmilla Karnstein stands to become CEO of one of the most successful tech companies in the country if she can follow her mother's succession plan. With six months to develop a new mobile app that justifies the appointment, Carmilla hires 15 new interns to jumpstart the process. One intern in particular, Laura Hollis, brings more to the table than Carmilla bargains for.</p><p>This is my first fic and really my first attempt at creative writing. Hope you enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Deal

**Author's Note:**

> This first chapter is more of a prologue than anything. Later chapters will be longer, I promise!

Carmilla had been excited earlier that day when she’d received the message that her mother wanted to talk to her. She knew that a formal request to meet in her office could only mean one thing. She raised her hand and rapped three quick, confident knocks against her mother’s office door.

“Come in!” she heard her mother call from the other side. 

Carmilla opened the door to find her mother had already moved from her typical spot behind her desk to one of two well worm leather couches in the corner of her office. _Well that’s a good sign,_ she thought. 

“Please sit, darling” Lilita said as she gestured to the couch opposite of her “I’m so glad you were able to meet me on such short notice. I have something important to discuss.” 

Carmilla sat down, making sure to keep the proper posture she knew her mother appreciated. 

“I asked you here, as you may have guessed, to talk about my succession plan. I know that you’ve enjoyed your time running our little startup, and I’ve been pleased with most of the performance of the mobile gaming division, but I think it’s time for you to step up and take care of the real business. I was not much older than you when I first started this company from the ground up, and I want it to stay in the family. I’ve always hoped to be able to pass the reins over to you, and I think you’re nearly ready. I can’t just hand this over to you without you earning it though, darling. Nepotism is not the Karnstein way.” 

“Of course, mother. What is it you’d like me to do?”

“Well that’s simple. I’m giving you six months to produce a buzz worthy new mobile app at your company. If you prove that you can drive those kinds of results in the tumultuous app industry, I feel like I can justify your appointment. It’s simple really.”

Carmilla nodded. She knew she could do this. The thought that she could be appointed CEO of the fourth most valuable company in the US before her 25th birthday made her stomach flutter. Her ego was buzzing just thinking about it. “Of course, mother. I look forward to the challenge.”

As Carmilla walked out of her mother’s office with a small skip in her step, she thought of all she would need to do to make the dream she’d had since childhood a reality. She was so close she could taste it. 

_Now I just need to come up with a great idea…or better yet, I should bring in some people that are eager to impress. Wait, not people…interns. College students that are willing to work 12 hour days in exchange for a meager salary, free food, and a cool office space. Karnstein you’re brilliant. ___


	2. First Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since the first chapter is so short, I decided to post chapter 2 today as well.

The sun was streaming in through the small window adjacent to Laura’s bed. She rolled over and groaned as the bright light flooded right into her line of vision. _Why is the sun even up right now? Ugh._ She rolled back over and grabbed a pillow to block the sun. She had almost drifted back off to sleep when she bolted upright. _Wait, seriously though. Why is the sun up?_ She frantically reached for her phone to check the time. She could not be late for her first day.

She found her phone, but when she pressed the unlock button she was horrified to see the screen was still black. She pulled the phone and charging cord higher and her stomach dropped as she saw the wall plug floating uselessly in the air. _You’ve got to be kidding me._

After the quickest shower of her life, Laura threw on some dark jeans, a black tank top, and her tried and true red flannel button up. She put her hair in a messy bun, not even bothering to apply makeup as she frantically reached for her bike helmet and ran out the door.

She made quick work of the 3 mile bike ride to downtown Austin. Living in her dingy east Austin rental house, while not glamorous, was at least convenient. She locked her bike outside the brick building where she was to be spending the majority of her time for the next four months. At least she had planned to…if she still had a job after this display of incompetence.

Laura clipped her helmet to her backpack and quickly took the stairs two-at-a-time into the building. She thought back to the email that contained first day instructions along with the welcome letter that she’d signed only 3 days ago. _Where was orientation supposed to be again?_

As Laura opened the door she saw 17 pairs of eyes all train on her immediately. Laura’s face was flushed from the exertion of the bike ride, and her hair was matted to her forehead, with a slight crease visible where her helmet had sat moments before. Her mind blanked as she quickly approached the group.

“Is this orientation? I’m so sorry I’m late. I had a problem with my alarm. But you don’t care about my excuses…I’m sorry. And now I’m rambling. Sorry, I’m Laura,” she said as she raised her hand in an awkward half wave. 

Carmilla was sitting next to Perry, her most senior development manager, who had been leading the orientation session up until this stunning outburst from this tiny ball of energy that stood in front of the group. She smirked and slowly stood to make her way to the late arriving girl.

Perry nodded to Laura acknowledging that she’d heard her and continued the session by answering the question that was asked right before the group had been interrupted. “As I was saying, Kirsch, you will all be paid biweekly…”

As Perry was answering a very tall man with a goofy grin plastered to his face, Carmilla leaned to whisper in Laura’s ear “looks like there’s only one seat left” as she gestured to the hammock hanging between a brick column and the open, metal staircase.

Laura shivered at the close proximity, and she turned to look at who was intruding on her personal space. _Oh my god. She’s gorgeous._ Laura gulped and attempted to smile politely at the dark haired, pale skinned stranger. She made her way over to the hammock, and as she put her weight back into the fabric, her legs kicked forward. She could feel herself falling backwards and knew what was coming. She tried to correct and threw her weight forward, just in time to elbow the beautiful stranger who had just whispered to her and was now attempting to keep her from falling.

“Fuck!” Carmilla said as Laura’s elbow caught her hip.

“OHMYGOD. I’m so sorry!” Laura nearly screamed.

From across the room, Perry grimaced at the outburst and use of unprofessional language. She tried to capture the attention of the room again by loudly clearing her throat, “Ahem, I guess now is a good time to introduce our President and CEO, Carmilla Karnstein,” she said as she gestured for Carmilla to join her at the front of the group.

Carmilla rubbed her hip as she made her way to join Perry. Laura’s heart sunk. _CEO? What is she like 25? Oh my god. I elbowed the CEO. The gorgeous, super young CEO. Worst. First. Day. Ever._

“Thanks, Perry. Hello everyone, I’m Carmilla Karnstein. Please call me Carmilla. I wanted to personally welcome all of you to the company and explain what you’ll be expected to do for the next four months. We brought you all in because you’re the most promising candidates in the area. All you will focus on in the coming months is creating and developing the next hit mobile game. By the end of next week you will all present your ideas to Perry. She will select the ideas with the most promise, and they will be presented to me. I expect nothing short of excellence. Thank you and welcome to SnarkGames.”

Carmilla briskly walked out of the room.

“Dude, her mom is the CEO of our parent company, LK Tech. She’s super loaded,” the boy who Laura had gathered was named Kirsch whispered to her.

_Yikes, I guess I really should have done some research. I can’t have this dude-bro knowing more than me._

“Now, if everyone will follow me, I’ll give you a tour the building,” Perry said as she smiled brightly at the 15 new interns. Laura followed at the front of the group, hungrily taking in her new surroundings, _which wow…no expense spared for interior design._

SnarkGames was situated downtown in an old brick building with original wood floors, large oak beams, and modern flourishes that had been added to give the space a modern feel. Laura loved the exposed brick and natural light that came pouring through the floor-to-ceiling warehouse windows, and she marveled at the huge monitors, modern furniture, and beautiful artwork that seemed to be around every corner.

As the group made their way up the metal staircase, Laura noticed that the building only had one office. The rest of the space was completely open, with communal seating all around. The area was buzzing with people collaborating and furiously typing away on their laptops. The collective energy of the employees made Laura eager to get to work, her mind already racing with potential game ideas.

The group rounded a corner at the top of the stairs and Perry gestured everyone toward what appeared to be a game room of sorts, complete with ping pong, foosball, and shuffleboard. 

“This will be your work area for the next four months. Feel free to use any of the communal seating, but this will be your ‘home base’. Please find the laptop with your work badge on it. You’re free to begin work. Good luck, and please come find me if anyone has questions.” She quickly walked back down the staircase, leaving the new interns to get acquainted with their space.

“Wow,” a girl with light blonde hair said as she let out a breath she’d clearly been holding in for some time. “This place is amazing. Hi, I’m Betty.”

“Laura. Nice to meet you.” Laura said as she extended her hand to shake Betty’s. “I can’t believe we get to work here for four months. I’m so excited!”

“Yeah, I’m really surprised they brought in 15 interns. I’ve been trying to get a gig here the last three semesters. They’re never hiring.”

“Guess we got lucky,” Laura squealed as she skipped over to her new laptop, clipping her badge to her jeans. She booted up her laptop, and as she heard the familiar tones, she couldn’t keep her smile hidden.


	3. The Run

Carmilla heard the kettle whistling as she finished lacing up her running shoes. She stretched her hands over her head until she felt the pop low in her back. She shook her shoulders and walked into the kitchen to prepare her coffee. If there was one thing that Carmilla treated with reverence, it was coffee. She ground her locally roasted beans and dumped them into her mesh filter that sat atop a glass carafe. She slowly poured the near boiling water over the grounds and waited as the warm aroma surrounded her.

Once all the caffeine filled goodness was captured in the carafe, she poured herself a large mug, grabbed a croissant, and headed out to her balcony. She let the soft morning air fill her lungs as her city greeted her. The sun had reached the top of the skyline, reflecting pale orange light off the buildings and the lake that hugged the edge of downtown. The view had persuaded Carmilla to choose her condo, and it never failed to stun her.

As she broke off a piece of her croissant and shoved it into her mouth, she thought back on her week at the office. The interns weren’t nearly as incompetent as she’d expected. Of course she’d hoped that she’d get one or two good ideas out of them, but as she thought back to the few encounters she had with them in the past five days she almost felt excited to see what ideas Perry deemed worthy of her attention.

And then there was that Hollis girl. After her initial disaster of an impression, she’d actually settled in nicely and seemed to be taking on a leadership role. She’d seen her leading brainstorming sessions and helping the other interns flesh out their ideas throughout the week, all the while keeping what seemed to be a sincere smile plastered to her face. Carmilla could learn a thing or two from her—namely how to not be perceived as an unfeeling robot. Though she might have to up the cookie budget if she was going to keep the girl around. 

The company chef, LaFontaine, had told Carmilla that Laura had managed to eat no fewer than 3 dozen cookies on her own in the five days she’d been part of the company. Quite the feat for someone that couldn’t weigh more than 115 pounds soaking wet. _Oh well. I guess I can afford some extra flour and sugar if it lands me my dream job._

Carmilla chugged the remaining coffee from her mug and finished the last few bites of her croissant. If she didn’t start her run soon, she’d be running right through the heat of the day. After rinsing her mug and setting her plate in the sink, she headed downstairs and began stretching. She took off at a leisurely pace, allowing her muscles to warm up as she headed straight for the trail around the lake. Every Saturday Carmilla ran the same route, and every time it gave her an overwhelming sense of calm.

Running had always been her escape. Being the daughter of one of the most influential people in America came with a certain level of unavoidable stress, and running had been the only consistent outlet for her to clear her head and focus on something other than the endless decisions and constant attention to detail that her job required. Well, running and the occasional night of drinking and meaningless sex.

Carmilla knew she was attractive. A night out at a bar never ended with her coming home alone unless she wasn’t feeling like company, and she prided herself on her ability to never attach feelings to what she considered to be purely physical transactions. Carmilla had long ago mastered the art of using sex as a stress reducer, and she was content to keep things that way. She didn’t have time for anything more lasting than a night. But no matter how much fun she had with her various conquests, she still found herself needing her Saturday runs to keep her sanity.

Once Carmilla reached the beginning of the trail, she started to focus more on her breathing and tried to maintain the mid-foot strike that she’d been working on. As she started to pick up her pace, she let her eyes drift off over the water to catch the sunlight glinting off the ripples that lapped toward the shore. The trees surrounding the shore were reflected in the water, and Carmilla found herself entranced by how peaceful she felt in the moment. When she finally looked up, it was just in time to throw her arms out and catch the bundle of elbows and knees that were careening her way. 

“Jesus Christ,” Carmilla growled as she was hit with the realization that she knew the girl whose limbs just assaulted her.

“Oh my god, I’m so sorry. I was looking at the water because the sun was just shining off of it in a really pretty way and…oh my god” Laura said as she slapped her hand to her forehead as she realized who was standing before her. _Of course I hurt my super hot CEO not once but twice in one week…and oh my god, she’s wearing spandex pants. Oh no. I’m staring at her ass. Get it together, Hollis._

Carmilla smirked as she realized where Laura’s hands had landed. “It’s fine. Can you let go of me though? I have a run to finish, and as fun as it is keeping you from falling on your face every five minutes, I really don’t have time to waltz next to this lake.”

Laura immediately let her hands fall from the grip they had on Carmilla’s waist and shoulder as a painfully hot blush worked its way up her neck to the tops of her ears, “Yes, of course. So sorry, Ms. Karnstein. See you Monday!” she managed to squeak out as she sprinted away.

Carmilla shook her head and couldn’t help the small chuckle that worked its way out of her throat. _Was she checking out my ass? And did she really call me Ms. Karnstein? What a try-hard._

Laura didn’t slow her pace until she was back to her bike on the south shore of the lake. She doubled-over and placed her hands on her knees as she tried to catch her breath. There was something about Carmilla that made her mind go completely blank. Maybe it was just nerves at being around someone only a couple years older than herself that was already so accomplished. _Or maybe it’s her perfect genetic makeup._ She shook her head hard trying to shake the mental image of Carmilla’s ass in her running tights. _Not. Appropriate._

Laura pulled her keys out of the zippered pocket of her fanny pack and unlocked her bike so she could head home. As she clipped her helmet on, she thought back on the debacle from a few minutes before and flushed as she realized what she’d said to Carmilla before sprinting away.

_Oh god. Did I call her Ms. Karnstein? Geez, she is going to think I have an authority complex or something now. Well…I mean I guess it wouldn’t be terrible to submit to Carmilla. NO, Laura. Stop it. She’s your boss. Your very sexy, intelligent, broody, borderline rude boss. Ugh. The next four months are going to be fun._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope y'all enjoyed it! Chapter 4 should be out by Thursday or so. I just need to tweak a few things and have my lovely girlfriend edit :)


	4. The Pitch

After spending an embarrassing amount of time over the weekend playing back her painful encounter at the lake with Carmilla, Laura decided that she would head into the office early Monday morning in an attempt to get lost in her work. She managed to beat everyone into the office with the exception of the company chef, LaFontaine, who was becoming one of Laura’s favorite people. During her first week, they had provided a nonstop stream of chocolate chip cookies and delicious lunches.

“Hey Laura, you eaten yet?”

Laura quickly shook her head. “I thought only lunch and snacks were provided?”

“…well some Mondays I get bored. The waffle iron is hot. You want something?”

Laura’s stomach grumbled at the word “waffle” and she smiled sheepishly. “Yeah a waffle sounds great, Laf. Thanks so much!”

“No prob. Why don’t you head upstairs and I’ll bring it when it’s ready.”

Laura skipped up the stairs to her work area and booted up her laptop. She was excited to finish outlining her app idea. Laura felt like she was in a good place, and even though she was terrified by the prospect of pitching an idea to Carmilla, there was another part of her that wanted every opportunity to be near the girl.

LaFontaine appeared at the top of the staircase with a gigantic waffle topped with chocolate chips and whipped cream. Laura’s eyes widened at the sight. “Oh my god, Laf, that looks amazing! How did you know chocolate chip and whipped cream were my favorite toppings?”

“Really, Hollis?” Laf chuckled. “I made more chocolate chip cookies for you last week than I did all last quarter.”

“Well thank you. That was really nice of you. I’ll bring the plate back down when I’m finished,” Laura said as she flashed a dazzling smile.

The day only got better for Laura, which was impressive considering she ate hand delivered sugary goodness for breakfast. Laura’s early arrival allowed her to fully form her app idea and set her up to start working on her pitch for the rest of the week. She intended to create story boards and wireframes to give her presentation the edge that she hoped would help advance her to the one on one pitch with Carmilla.

The only hitch in the day came at lunchtime when she was sitting at one of the picnic tables outside the office with Betty and Kirsch. They’d been talking about various classes that they’d taken in the prior semesters—as computer science majors attending the same university, they knew all the same professors and enjoyed trading horror stories about the endless lectures and impossible group projects they’d each been subjected to. 

Laura was enjoying the conversation and felt like Kirsch and Betty were starting to become her real friends and not just her work friends when one of the other interns joined them at their table. The girl, Mattie, was a sight to behold. She wore a beige and black color blocked dress that hugged her curves, black leather heels that looked more expensive than anything Laura owned, and around her neck she wore a gold necklace that rested just below her sternum. One of the big perks of working for a startup was being able to wear casual clothes, so Laura never quite understood why Mattie was always going out of her way to dress like she was headed to Milan for fashion week.

“Hey Mattie,” Laura chimed to try to break the awkward silence that had descended on the table since Mattie’s arrival.

“Laura,” Mattie flashed a quick, professional smile her way. “I just wanted to stop by to let you know that I overheard Perry talking with Carmilla earlier. They mentioned that only one app would make it into the prototyping phase, and seeing as you’re the only other intern who has a chance, I wanted to come over and say I look forward to the challenge of beating you.”

Mattie stood and walked away with graceful strides that Laura tried to convince herself she wasn’t jealous of.

“Wow, angry hottie seems a little full of herself,” Kirsch said with a sad look on his face.

“First of all, Kirsch, you really should stop calling women ‘hotties’. It’s not flattering and some people who don't know you might take it in a really bad way,” Laura said as she smiled to let Kirsch know she wasn’t mad at him for his bro-language. “And second of all, don’t listen to her. All of us have an equal chance of having our idea chosen, and you shouldn’t let her make you feel like you don’t have anything valuable to bring to the table.”

Betty looked at Laura with an impressed look, and Kirsch was practically beaming, “Thanks, little hottie—I mean Laura. You’re really great, you know?”

It wasn’t until later in the week that Laura’s nerves started to get to her. Now that it was Thursday, Laura was starting to doubt all the work she’d put into her presentation. Do people really want another puzzle game? What makes this any different than the thousands of other games available for people to download? She shook her head. The pitch meeting was scheduled to start that afternoon, so Laura had no time to make any changes. _Trust your gut, Hollis._

The morning flew by and before Laura realized what was happening, she was sitting towards the back of the intern work area as she watched Perry draw the order of presentations. In a cruel twist of events, Laura’s name was drawn last. Now she’d have to listen to all her peers present and try to keep from freaking out for two whole hours.

Laura was impressed by most of the ideas. Some were duds, of course, but more often than not she found herself nodding along and agreeing with whichever presenter was touting the potential of their idea. 

Mattie’s pitch was flawless. Her mockups were gorgeous, and Laura wondered if she had some previous experience in design, because, _wow_. Laura’s doubt crept back to the forefront of her mind. How could she top that?

Before long, Perry was calling Laura’s name. Laura closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and tried to steel her nerves before standing with as much confidence as she could muster and striding to the front of the room. Laura projected her wireframes for everyone to see and began, her confidence returning as she saw the impressed faces of her peers.

Laura must have gotten into the zone, because the next thing she knew there was light applause. She’d finished. Perry was beaming from the side of the impromptu stage and gestured for Laura to sit back down with the rest of the interns.

“First let me say how very impressed I am with all the ideas that you came up with. Those pitches were all great. Unfortunately, only two of you will have the opportunity to present your ideas to Carmilla. Matska Belmonde and Laura Hollis, congratulations. Your presentations impressed me, and I think Carmilla will be very eager to select one of your apps for development.”

Laura squealed with excitement and immediately felt Kirsch’s strong arm pull her in for a side hug, “Congrats, bro!” he said in his most sincere tone, “I hope you kick Mattie’s ass” he added in a whisper as he let her go.

“Laura, you’re first up, so please head over to Carmilla’s office.”

Laura’s smile faltered. “We’re presenting to Carmilla right now?” she said, unable to keep the panic out of her voice. Mattie scoffed as she flipped her hair over her shoulder, “I can go first if you’d prefer? I’m more than prepared, Perry. I really wouldn’t mind.”

“That won’t be necessary.” Laura barked through gritted teeth. “I just didn’t realize the final presentations would be today.”

Laura mustered all her confidence as she gathered her presentation materials and headed over to the only office in the building. As she approached the door, she felt the all too familiar heat creep up her neck and color her cheeks as she thought of her prior run-ins with the CEO. She raised her hand to the door and tentatively knocked as she tried to steel her nerves.

Carmilla’s head tilted at the noise, as she peered toward the door. The shadow peaking under the door confirmed that she’d heard correctly. “Come in!” she yelled as she slipped on the heels that she’d kicked off under her desk. Normally she would opt for her standard combat boots and skinny jeans, but ever since her mother’s challenge she’d been dressing in her most professional attire. It had been uncomfortable, but the constricting wardrobe was a constant reminder of the task at hand.

The door creaked open, and Laura poked her head through, unsure of what her next move should be. Should she just charge in and start? Had Carmilla been expecting her? She opted to open the door the rest of the way and stood at the threshold awkwardly awaiting instruction.

Carmilla couldn’t hide the smirk as she reflected on the incident from Saturday. Of course Laura would be nervous.

“Oh it’s you. Should I get some protection?” she asked as the corner of her mouth quirked up. She couldn’t help but attempt to fluster the small girl with some harmless sexual innuendo. She let the words sink in and watched the gears turn.

Laura blushed and looked down to the ground to gather her thoughts. _Protection? I mean I know I basically tackled her Saturday and I did throw an elbow into her on my first day, but still. Is she flirting with me? Oh god…she’s staring at me…and what’s with that smirk? Oh right, I haven’t spoken yet._

”I don’t think that will be necessary,” she managed to grumble as she realized the CEO was just trying to rile her. “Perry sent me to present my idea. Mattie and I are the finalists.”

“Wow, cutie. Didn’t think you had it in you.” Carmilla grimaced at her choice of words. Maybe Laura didn’t realize what she’d said.

_CUTIE?? OHMYGOD. Did she just call me cutie?_

Laura coughed violently as she tried to catch her breath. Carmilla’s embarrassment turned back into amusement as she watched her words undo the small girl.

“You all right there, Laura?” She asked, her professional tone restored, “would you like some water?”

Laura nodded, not trusting herself to form a coherent sentence. Carmilla stood and made her way over to a small bar in the corner of her office where a pitcher of ice water sat. She poured two glasses. She could feel Laura’s eyes trained on her, so she decided to add a little sway to her hips as she turned around to hand the small girl her glass. _Just a little harmless flirting. It doesn’t need to mean anything._

“Here you go,” she said, adding a small wink, “that should help. Now, why don’t you show me your idea.”

Laura took three quick gulps from her water, as she tried to get her heartbeat to return to a normal pace. She didn’t know why Carmilla had this effect on her. Well…she knew that Carmilla had dark eyes that she could see herself getting lost in and hair that would be perfect for pulling in bed. And that long, elegant neck that sat below a perfectly chiseled jaw. Oh and of course there was her perfectly smooth, porcelain skin that Laura imagined would feel amazing underneath her lips. But these were not thoughts that an intern should have about a CEO. Carmilla was so far out of her league it wasn’t even a possibility.

After finally having calmed herself down, Laura began her pitch. To Carmilla’s credit, she gave Laura her full attention and didn’t try any further antics. Carmilla was quite impressed by Laura’s idea. She knew Laura had potential after witnessing her in action over the last two weeks, but Laura had exceeded her expectations.

Once Laura finished her pitch, she allowed herself to look directly into Carmilla’s eyes—something she’d been avoiding since she began, and at that moment she realized what a good idea that had been. Her breath hitched as she saw the look in Carmilla’s eyes. Neither girl looked away until a small knock came from behind the closed door.

“That’ll probably be Mattie,” Laura said, dissolving the tension in the room. “Thanks for listening to my pitch.”

Carmilla nodded in reply, “Good work, Laura.”

Carmilla hovered her hand just above the small of Laura’s back as she walked her to the door. Her fingers itched to close the distance, but she knew that wasn’t a good idea. She couldn’t deny that there was something about the girl that intrigued her. Laura seemed to have a fire in her that she kept quelled, but if Carmilla was going to prove herself to her mother, she couldn’t afford to be intrigued. Laura was an employee, and Carmilla intended to treat her as such. She could still enjoy the admittedly nice view while keeping things strictly professional.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you guys think!
> 
> Oh and if you live in North Carolina like I do and are bummed about HB2, go have a listen to First Class by Rainbow Kitten Surprise on Spotify and try to think about the good things that come out of NC. Like excellent music and delicious hard cider.


	5. The Winner

Laura stared at the ceiling as she lay under her sheet—her comforter had been kicked onto the floor long ago. She’d been awake since 5:30, but she couldn’t find the energy to drag herself out of bed. Her sleep the night before had been fitful. Her mind kept drifting back to her meeting with Carmilla. The meeting had gone well, but something about their interaction left Laura feeling uneasy. She decided it wasn’t worth worrying over, but her subconscious didn’t get the memo and kept surging images of Carmilla whispering in her ear to the forefront of her dreams.

_Ugh, this is ridiculous. I’m sure Carmilla didn’t mean anything by it. She probably calls everyone shorter than 5’2’’ “cutie.”_

With renewed determination, Laura peeled herself out of bed and headed into the bathroom to get ready for the day. Carmilla would be announcing the winning app today, so Laura wanted to look her best.

She opted for a grey pencil skirt and loose blue blouse, deciding to dress it up much more than her usual look of jeans and a comfortable shirt. Laura checked her reflection in the floor length mirror attached to her closet door and gave herself a quick thumbs up. _Game on, Mattie._

Laura arrived at the office and saw a sealed envelope sitting at her usual workspace. She immediately tore it open and pulled out the contents.

“Please come see me in my office when you get in. -C”

Laura didn’t give herself time to freak out as she immediately headed to Carmilla’s door. She knocked twice and waited. The door opened in front of her and she was greeted by a smiling Perry. “Good. Everyone’s here.” Laura heard Carmilla say from inside the room, “come on in, Laura.”

Perry swung the door open wider, and Laura saw Mattie sitting in front of Carmilla’s desk. Laura couldn’t read Mattie’s expression, but she recognized that she wasn’t her usual, assured self.

“We’ve already spoken with Mattie here and let her know that we were incredibly impressed with her pitch” _Great, I have to get my runner-up speech in front of Mattie. This isn’t humiliating at all._ “However,” Carmilla continued, “Perry and I both agree that your app would better position SnarkGames in the current marketplace. We feel that your app could be a hit, and we’d like to see it through prototyping, then a beta that we would release to a few customers, and finally, if all goes well, a general rollout to the public.”

Laura couldn’t contain her excitement. She squealed in response, “Wow, thank you so much! You won’t be disappointed. Can I get to work right now? When is the prototype expected to be complete? How many developers will I have to help? Am I asking too many questions?”

Carmilla smiled and gestured for Perry to answer Laura’ slew of questions. Perry cleared her throat and explained the details to Laura. “We expect that you will have prototyped the major functional areas of the app by the end of the month, which gives you just under three weeks. For the beta, you’d have a much longer development time. You will have the full pool of interns to help you with development, and I will be there every step of the way to manage any bumps that come along. In addition to being a development manager, I’m also a certified scrum master, so I’ll help you keep the project on track.”

Laura nodded as she took in everything that Perry had said. She looked over to Carmilla and noticed that the normally broody CEO had a small smile on her face. As their eyes locked, Carmilla added, “We have our two-year company anniversary party at the end of August, so if all goes well, we’ll see if we can turn the party into an app launch as well. Good luck, Laura. Don’t let me down.”

Laura put on her most serious face as she said, “I won’t let you down. Thank you for the opportunity.”

The quick departure from Laura’s bubbly, excited rambling to serious businesswoman amused Carmilla and she tried to bite back the widening smile that she hadn’t been able to shake since Laura entered her office. “That’ll be all,” she said as she tried to maintain her authoritative demeanor. 

Laura bounded out of the office, but just before she was able to sprint up the stairs to share the news with Kirsch and Betty, she felt a strong grip on her elbow. She turned with a start, surprised to see Mattie staring at her with intense eyes. “I guess congratulations are in order. Do let me know if you need any help.”

“Thanks, Mattie. That’s really nice of you. For what it’s worth, I thought your idea was great,” Laura said as she quickly squeezed the hand still gripping tightly to her arm.

“It’s not worth as much as winning, but thank you,” Mattie grumbled as she released Laura’s arm.

Laura took that as her opportunity to bolt and made her way up the stairs. She found Betty and Kirsch sitting in their usual spots in their work area, and before she could think about proper workplace etiquette she yelled, “I won! They picked my app!”

She was met with polite applause from most of her peers, but Kirsch opted to scoop her up in his arms into a bear hug. He swayed from side to side, their height difference causing Laura’s feet to hang uselessly a comical distance from the ground. “Okay we’re totally going out to celebrate!” Betty said from behind Kirsch.

“Okay, yeah let’s do it!” Laura agreed. Kirsch thrust his fist in the air as he said, “Oh it’s on! Alright, leave everything up to me. We can meet at the Zeta house!”

“Kirsch, I don’t want to celebrate with a bunch of frat bros…” Laura said trying her best not to offend Kirsch too much. “Do you think we can just keep the invite list to the interns?”

“Oh absolutely, little hottie. Say no more! Kirsch has you covered,” He said with a mischievous grin. Laura was a little nervous about a night out planned by Kirsch, but she was too excited about her app getting chosen to care much.

“Okay, Kirsch. Just text us the plan after work. Meet around 10 or so? I want to have plenty of time to get ready.” Laura realized that it was still before 10 A.M. and that she had a full day of work yet to do. “Alright, everyone, let’s talk about how things are going to go the next few weeks!” Laura said as she spoke loud enough for all the interns to hear.

Laura gave a quick rundown of the plans for the coming weeks to all the interns and expressed how thrilled she was to have such a great team. She didn’t want to come across too demanding on the first day, and since it was Friday, she decided to take it easy on people and just told everyone to research any existing apps with a similar concept. On Monday, they’d regroup and discuss the actual plans for development.

Laura didn’t lose one ounce of her excitement as the day wore on, and if anything, by the time 5 o clock rolled around and people started to head out, she was more excited than ever. Kirsch and Betty were both packing up their laptops to leave for the day when Laura decided that she wasn’t going to be able to finish everything she’d set out to. “Come on little nerd, your work will still be waiting for you on Monday,” Kirsch said as he beckoned for Laura to start packing up her things.

“Fine fine. You guys go on ahead. I just need to shut down and pack up. Meet at the Zeta house at 10?” Kirsch and Betty nodded as they headed down the stairs. “Yeah, see you!” they both called on their way out.

Once Laura was alone in the office, she allowed herself to absorb all the events of the day. She was going to have a professionally developed app in a few short months. She felt like her career was taking off, and she was so excited to be hitting this milestone before she was even done with school. She decided right then and there that she was going to do everything she could to make the most of the opportunity that had been handed to her. She closed her eyes, breathed in deeply as she leaned back in her chair, letting her excitement wash over her. 

_I’m going to celebrate so hard tonight. I’ve earned it._

Later that night, Laura was holding two clothing options up to her body as she studied herself in the mirror. She couldn’t decide if she wanted to go for seductive or cute—she rarely opted to go the seductive route, but she just wanted to let loose. _And if I can get a girl interested, I wouldn’t turn her down tonight._ She smirked to herself as she hung the navy tank top with tiny foxes printed on it back in her closet and pulled a grey cropped tank top over her head that showed off an almost criminal amount of skin.

Laura wasn’t normally the type to go out, and she especially wasn’t the type to go out so scantily clad. Her cropped tank top paired with short, black denim shorts was essentially the equivalent of a swim suit in terms of coverage, but it was summer in Austin, so she figured that whatever club they ended up at would be sweltering. Laura knew she had a good body. It was the result of yoga three times a week, so despite her lack of clothing, she was feeling super confident as she headed out to the Zeta house.

Kirsch stood on the wrap around porch, red solo cup in hand as he waited for his fellow interns to show. His Friday nights were almost always reserved for bro time, but he was so excited for Laura, that he couldn’t help himself when Betty suggested going out. And besides, Laura was an honorary bro in his book. He sipped from his cup as he heard the front gate open up and saw a tiny figure come bounding down the pavement.

“Whoa. Looking hot, little hottie!” Kirsch called to Laura as she approached and the security light illuminated her outfit. “You definitely won’t be needing my wingman abilities dressed like that.”

Laura smiled and looked down at the ground, unsure of why Kirsch’s words embarrassed her. She wasn’t accustomed to such genuine compliments from someone that wasn’t hitting on her. Laura had been pleasantly surprised earlier in the week when she’d let Kirsch know that she was gay—his response was a high five and a promise to be her wingman whenever she needed. She chuckled. “Thanks, Kirsch! I thought I’d try to up my game a bit tonight.”

“Well you nailed it. Come on, let’s get you a little pregame drink before everyone else gets here.”

It wasn’t long before the group of interns was headed to the bus stop down the street from the Zeta house to head downtown. Kirsch’s face lit up when he saw that they were approaching their stop. “Alright guys, this is it. We’re here!”

The group exited the bus and took in the club before them. The building was covered in rainbow flags and a pale purple glow was emanating from the partially open door. Two large bouncers stood, eyeing the group up. “In or out, guys?” one of them said.

“Kirsch, you really didn’t have to bring everyone to a gay club…” Laura said. Kirsch’s smile only grew wider at her words. “Oh no you don’t, Laura! We all already talked about it, and everyone agreed that this is where we wanted to come. Besides, this way you can hit on all the ladies,” Kirsch responded with a wink.

“That’s not how it works…” Laura grumbled, and then as she realized how Kirsch’s face had fallen she added, “but thanks. I’ve heard this place has a really good DJ. Shall we?”

After getting her I.D. back from the bouncer, Laura headed into the building and straight to the bar. _Yeah, alcohol definitely needs to happen._ She ordered a frozen daiquiri after spotting the machine spinning on the back wall of the bar. Taking a sip from the sweet drink, she turned around, eyes scanning the dance floor. _Well it is kind of nice to know that most of these girls are gay…_

Her eyes darted around until they landed on a woman whose back was turned to the bar. Laura noticed the leather pants first. They were so tight, they looked like they’d been painted on. As her eyes scanned up the woman’s body, she saw that she was wearing a lacy corset that stopped just above the hip, showing off a very impressive figure. Her dark hair fell loosely around her shoulders in ringlet curls. Laura’s mouth felt dry as she took in the back of the woman. She took a few steps forward, wanting to get closer so she could see the woman’s face. Just then, the woman turned and her eyes locked with Laura’s from across the room.

_Carmilla._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter was fun to write. I'm hoping you guys enjoy it :)
> 
> It should be up by Thursday night!


	6. The Club

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to post a day early. I'm calling this smut-adjacent, and it's my first attempt. Let me know what you guys think!

Laura was having difficulty catching her breath after spotting Carmilla across the room. Carmilla appeared unfazed…the only acknowledgement that she’d even recognized Laura was her trademark smirk paired with an eyebrow raise. Laura stood still, afraid to get any nearer and also afraid to look away. Carmilla was the first to break eye contact as her attention shifted to a blonde woman who had just called her name and held up two drinks with a seductive smile. Carmilla grabbed the drink from the girl. Laura watched with rapt attention as the blonde woman slowly caressed Carmilla’s arm and down her side, settling her hand on Carmilla’s hip, just below the hem of her corset. Carmilla leaned into the touch and whispered something in the girl’s ear that caused her to tilt her head back with laughter.

Laura reluctantly let her gaze fall to the ground, confused by the sinking feeling in her stomach. _What am I…jealous?_ Laura decided a shot wouldn’t hurt her mood, so she turned back to the bar, ordered a tequila shot, and downed it. When she turned back to the dance floor, it was with renewed determination to find herself someone to have a good time with.

It didn’t take long after she went out onto the dance floor before Laura had a very cute girl dancing behind her. Laura turned to flash what she hoped was a coy grin, and she was rewarded by the girl leaning in closer and placing her hands lightly on Laura’s hips. Laura put her own hands over the girl’s and ground her hips backwards to close the gap between their bodies. She heard the girl’s breath hitch and felt her smile next to her ear before her new dance partner whispered, “you’re the prettiest girl in here.” Laura rolled her eyes, happy that the girl couldn’t see her reaction to the words… _ugh I hate cheesy people. At least she’s cute._

Carmilla had her back to a wall as she was scanning the room in horror at how many of her interns were present. She didn’t particularly care if a bunch of her employees saw her outside of work, but she’d planned on finding an attractive girl to take home, and she felt like these kids were going to salt her game. Her aloof attitude didn’t seem to be losing her any points with Elsie, the woman she’d already invested most of the night with, though. “Come on, let’s dance!” Elsie yelled as she grabbed Carmilla’s hand. Carmilla allowed herself to be dragged out onto the dance floor.

As she took her position behind Elsie, Carmilla spotted Laura again—this time she was much closer, and Carmilla was able to get a good look at her. She was wearing a cropped tank top that hugged her chest and then hung loosely several inches above her navel, showing off a toned, lightly tanned stomach. Carmilla’s eyes travelled lower, taking in every inch of Laura’s body. She noticed the black denim shorts that sat low on her hips and ended only a few inches below. _Wow, she looks good tonight._

Carmilla shook her head and turned her attention back to Elsie, running her hands from her shoulders, down her back, and around to the front of her hips to pull her closer. As they settled into rhythm with the song, Carmilla felt eyes on her. She looked up to see Laura looking straight at her. The girl behind Laura ran her fingers through Laura's hair and pulled it lightly to the side, placing her mouth just below her ear. Carmilla watched as Laura leaned into the girl’s lips, closing her eyes and rolling her head back. When she opened her eyes, they were locked on Carmilla’s, only they were darker this time, and they caused a shiver to run through Carmilla’s body.

Laura knew that she should stop looking at Carmilla. She knew it was wholly unprofessional and borderline creepy, but she couldn’t take her eyes off of her. She watched as Carmilla’s fingers gripped the girls hips more tightly and pushed them from side to side. Carmilla looked straight at Laura as she let her right hand travel up the girl’s body, lifting up her shirt to the point where Laura could see that Carmilla was now tracing her hand just below the girl’s breasts. Laura’s breath hitched, which her partner took as encouragement to let her hands roam from Laura’s hips to the tops of her shorts. She felt the girl slide her hands in and trace along the top of her underwear. Normally Laura wouldn’t allow under-clothes groping on a dance floor, but when she saw Carmilla’s eyes flick down to the hands inside her shorts and back up to Laura’s eyes and then lick her lips, Laura decided she didn’t care about any of her rules.

Carmilla couldn’t look away. She was entranced as she watched the roaming hands of Laura’s partner and imagined what it would feel like if she were the one touching Laura in that way. She let her own hands do to Elsie what she wished she was doing to Laura. She grabbed the front of Elsie’s thighs and pulled the girl back into her, as she let her hands travel up and onto the girl’s stomach. She leaned forward and used her left hand to pull Elsie’s hair aside and take an earlobe between her teeth. Carmilla licked lightly and then exhaled warm air, which elicited a shiver from her partner, but that was a secondary concern. Carmilla was too busy delighting in the fact that Laura’s mouth was now hanging agape. She reveled in the knowledge that she could make Laura react to her physically from across a crowded dance floor. 

Carmilla decided to raise the stakes as she turned Elsie to face her and slid one of her thighs between the girl’s legs. Carmilla pulled Elsie close to her and further onto her thigh. She leaned in and began kissing Elsie’s exposed neck. Carmilla’s eyes once again found the eyes she was searching for over Elsie’s shoulder, and she couldn’t contain her smirk upon seeing Laura’s face. Laura’s chest was heaving, her face was flushed, and her eyes were dark with lust. Carmilla didn’t know if she’d ever been more attracted to someone than she was in that moment.

Laura felt her heart thundering in her chest, accompanied by a corresponding pulsating between her legs. _How can I be so turned on just by watching Carmilla dance with another girl?_ Every move Carmilla made, Laura swore she felt a phantom caress on her own body. She couldn’t help but think of all the things she wanted Carmilla to do to her. Her imagination was running with this scenario when she was suddenly being turned around to face her partner. Soon the girl’s lips were on her own, and Laura felt herself reciprocating even though she mostly wanted to regain her visual on Carmilla. When the kiss broke, Laura quickly turned to where Carmilla had been before, but when her eyes settled on the spot, Carmilla was nowhere to be found.

_Well shit._

“Carmilla, whoa! Where are we going?” Elsie said, pulling her arm back from Carmilla’s tight grip as they entered a small hallway off the dance floor. “I didn’t want to dance anymore,” Carmilla growled.

“Oh okay, do you want to get out of here?” Elsie said, trying to keep the hurt out of her voice.

“Definitely, cutie.” Carmilla said sweetly, realizing that she was taking out on Elsie her surprising frustration at seeing Laura kiss someone. “I don’t live far.” Carmilla was very glad of that fact as she realized just how turned on Laura had made her.

_I can’t very well go back out there and fuck Laura against a wall, so this will have to do. Jesus, Carmilla. Keep it together. Mother would kill you._

Laura kept peering around the club for any sign of Carmilla as she continued dancing. She was rapidly losing interest though now that Carmilla was nowhere to be found. Deciding she’d had enough, she turned around, gave her dance partner a kiss on the cheek and told her she’d “see her around”.

Laura stalked back out to the patio behind the club, where she’d spotted Kirsch heading earlier. Once outside, she spotted several of the interns, including Kirsch holding down a table. She approached and plopped into a seat with a frustrated sigh.

“Laura!” Kirsch slurred. Clearly he’d been putting away the “brews” as he so broishly called them. “What’s up, little hottie? I totally saw you in there getting it with that other hottie. Why you bummed?”

“Oh it’s nothing. I was just tired of dancing. Are you guys having a good time?” Laura asked in an attempt to make up for effectively ditching the crew all night.

“Totally! Oh and you’ll never believe who Scott saw! Bro…Carmilla is here, and according to Scott she’s looking super sexy. Who knew she was gay, huh?” Kirsch said as he raised his eyebrows suggestively, while Scott, another intern from their group, sat there nodding fervently as if to reiterate just how “sexy” Carmilla looked.

Laura felt like her face was on fire. _Oh yeah, I figured out she was gay when we were just eye fucking across the dance floor._ She opted for a mini-lecture instead. “Guys, she’s our boss. You really shouldn’t talk about her like that. Not to mention it’s not cool to objectify women like that.”

Both guys dropped their heads and apologized.

_Well it's not like they're wrong about the sexy thing. I mean...damn. Oh god! How am I going to face her at work on Monday??_


	7. Business as Usual

The room was dark. Any light that could have filtered in was blocked by the black-out curtains hanging over the floor-to-ceiling windows. Carmilla groaned as she lazily reached over to her nightstand to grab her phone. The curtains were great for keeping the room pitch black but not so great at indicating the time of day. 

_5:30…ugh._

She figured she might as well be productive now that she was up, knowing that she wouldn’t be able to get back to sleep. She needed to clear her mind. She especially needed to stop seeing Laura’s bare stomach every time she closed her eyes. A run seemed like the perfect option.

She huffed out a breath as she stood from her bed and sauntered over to the bathroom. She needed to hurry if she wanted to get in her usual four miles and still get to work early enough to beat the crowd and hide out in her office—she didn’t particularly like the idea of running into the girl that had been plaguing her thoughts since Friday. 

Not even Elsie’s company had been able to dampen Carmilla’s thoughts of Laura. Every touch, smile, and moan that Carmilla elicited from Elsie just made her wonder if she’d be able to get the same reaction from Laura. Carmilla chalked up her desire to the whole forbidden romance aspect of things and Laura’s undeniable beauty. Laura’s other traits made Carmilla sure that she couldn’t possibly have non-physical feelings. She was obnoxiously chipper, way too enthusiastic about mundane tasks, and she was prone to endless rants—not to mention 22 years old and entirely too naive. 

_Well maybe not that naive if her dancing was any indication._

Carmilla shook her head. It didn’t matter what Laura Hollis was or wasn’t—nothing could ever happen. 

_____________________________

Laura groaned as she situated herself on her bike. Usually her commute was a source of solace for her and an opportunity to clear her mind before starting her day, but she knew that wasn’t happening today. Clearing her mind seemed impossible knowing that her feet were taking her straight to the person she was terrified to see. Laura spent her entire weekend deciding how she was going to handle dealing with Carmilla, and she didn’t come any closer to making a decision—unless deciding to show up extra early and hide out in the intern work area all day counted. 

Logically Laura knew that she was not going to be able to avoid the CEO of a company with 45 employees for an entire summer, but she figured if she could put enough days in between the club and the next encounter then maybe Carmilla would have completely forgotten about the whole…incident?…debacle?…horribly awkward, painfully inappropriate ogling of an authority figure? 

_Ugh, I’m screwed._

The downhill stretch of road that marked the end of her ride only heightened Laura’s anxiety. She made good time and was sure no one else would be in the office, so at least she’d have time to grab a good hiding spot and camp out before anyone else came in. With that small, comforting thought, Laura dismounted her bike and locked it just outside the building. She made her way up the steps and to the door, swinging the door open just enough to dart through. She breathed a sigh of relief when she was inside, noticing that no one else was around—or at least most of the motion-activated lights were dimmed.

She made her way up the steps to get her laptop booted up, deciding as she set her things down that hot chocolate was just the thing she needed. She bounded down the stairs with impressive speed and jogged over to the kitchen, rounding the corner quickly into the room. She skidded to a stop. 

_Oh. No. Okay…just back up. She hasn’t seen you._

Her feet shuffled backwards as she kept her eyes fixed on the bent over figure standing in front of the open refrigerator. Her trajectory out of the room was off the mark, causing her to bump up against something not so solid in her haste to escape. She whipped around, trying to steady the shelf, but only succeeding in knocking over a huge box of protein bars, a variety pack of candy bars, a family size bag of trail mix, and the majority of the chip bags that had been neatly arranged in rows. Laura froze.

“Well…I think we might just have to take out a new insurance policy if we want to keep you around, sweetheart.”

The sultry voice that she’d been unable to stop hearing in her head was now echoing through the empty building and causing Laura all kinds of distress.

_Well there goes my hiding plan…_

She slowly bent over to start picking up the mess, afraid to turn around. “I’m so sorry! I thought I was the only one here, and oh my god I’m such a klutz. Don’t worry. I’ll get this cleaned up.” 

Laura felt the air around her shift, and she knew that Carmilla was now much closer than before. Still afraid to make eye contact, she continued picking up wrappers and throwing them haphazardly back into the containers that had fallen. She felt a hand on her shoulder and slowly turned to look at the face that had consumed her thoughts. Her mouth was dry and words escaped her as she locked eyes with Carmilla, whose face was mere inches from her own.

“Hey. It’s really fine. Let me help you,” Carmilla said with a surprising amount of sincerity. 

Laura blushed and tucked a stray lock of of hair behind her ear. “Thanks. You really don’t have to though. I swear I’m like a walking disaster sometimes.” 

Carmilla chuckled at that, shaking her head. “It’s endearing, trust me.”

Laura’s felt her heart beating erratically at the close proximity and Carmilla’s sudden soft tone.

_Why is she being so nice to me?_

_______________________________

The morning run had done nothing to help get Laura out of Carmilla’s thoughts. If anything, it only sharpened her focus, bringing fresh images of Laura moving her body in ways that made Carmilla feel weak. Now she only felt dread as she entered the thankfully empty office. Her eyes drifted to the hammock that Laura had fallen from on her first day, and she let out a small chuckle while shaking her head. Since that first meeting, Laura continually crept into Carmilla’s thoughts, much to the normally broody girl’s chagrin. She let her fingers trail over the hammock as she headed into her office, shaking her head along the way.

_This girl is killing me._

Once inside her office, Carmilla checked her email—twenty-three new unread since she last looked before her run. She browsed them and sent her usual short responses where necessary. She didn’t see the point in elaborating when she specifically only hired people that had the initiative necessary to take as little guidance as possible. After checking her email, she took a few quick notes of things that she wanted to make sure were taken care of this week, and as she was finishing up her list, her stomach grumbled. She sighed and stood from her chair to make her way into the kitchen. _Maybe Laf left some focaccia leftovers in the fridge._

She was just reaching into the back of the fridge when she heard shuffling footsteps followed by a loud crash. She jumped from the sudden noise and turned quickly to see what the frilly hell was going on. Her heart soared and sank all at once. 

_Oh…so much for avoiding her._

Carmilla tried to stifle her laugh—how was Laura always getting herself into these situations? She smirked to herself. _Might as well try to lighten the mood._

“Well…I think we might just have to take out a new insurance policy if we want to keep you around, sweetheart.”

Carmilla watched as her words made Laura freeze in her place and then frowned as she saw her shoulders shrug and her head drop in defeat.

“I’m so sorry! I thought I was the only one here, and oh my god I’m such a klutz. Don’t worry. I’ll get this cleaned up.”

Carmilla’s feet carried her across the kitchen to Laura’s side. She wasn’t sure when her brain decided that was the correct course of action, but once she was in Laura’s space, she couldn’t help but reach out and touch her. She lightly placed her hand on her shoulder and offered to help. She didn’t want the girl to feel bad for something so inconsequential, and it wasn’t hard to see that the girl was beating herself up. 

_Or maybe this has nothing to do with the spilled snacks. Maybe she doesn’t want to see me. Maybe she thinks I was being creepy on Friday._

Carmilla was torn from her thoughts as she watched Laura tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. That small movement caused a flurry of feelings within Carmilla. _Okay, when did that become a thing? Carmilla Karnstein does not get butterflies._

“Thanks. You really don’t have to though. I swear I’m like a walking disaster sometimes,” Laura said. 

Before Carmilla could think about her words, they were tumbling out of her mouth. “It’s endearing, trust me.”

_Okay that’s enough, Karnstein. You need to get out of here._

“I should really get back to work though. See you later.”  


___________________________

Laura stared at Carmilla as she walked away. _Well that wasn’t terrible. At least she didn’t mention anything about Friday…but god, why does she have to look so perfect all the time? Ugh. Worst. Crush. Ever._

She finished packing up the last of the protein bars and placed everything back in its rightful place on the shelf before grabbing a pack of PopTarts and jogging back up to the intern area. She didn’t expect any of the other interns to show up for an hour or maybe longer, so she decided to start creating some user flows and planning out which pages of the app she’d prototype.

By the time people were filtering into the office, Laura had a clear plan for the week, and she articulated what she wanted from each of her peers as they arrived. By 10AM every one of the interns was immersed in a task, and Laura looked around the room with pride.

The rest of the day passed without incident. In fact, it flew by for Laura who didn’t even realize it was nearing 5 o clock when her computer dinged, alerting her to a new email. Her face lit up at the subject line: “Company Outing”. She quickly opened the email and read:
    
    
    It’s that time of year again, team! Our annual summer outing to float the river is coming up. Remember to wear a swimsuit, pack sunscreen, and come prepared for a fun filled day at the river this Friday. Food and drink will be provided (yes, that includes beer and wine—keep your cool), so just bring yourselves and a good attitude.
    Thanks!  
    
    Perry

Laura squealed as she looked around to find Betty. When their eyes locked from across the room, she shouted, “Did you read Perry’s email?! We’re going to the river!”

“Yeah yeah, nerd I got it,” Betty responded playfully. “Haven’t you been before? It’s not THAT fun, Laura.”

Laura just smiled in response. No one was going to bring Laura’s spirit down. She adored the water, and a day on the river sounded perfect to her. “Well I, for one, can’t wait!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to post this a few days early because it was done, and well, why not? I tried something a little different with the POV shifts, so let me know if it was weird or bad.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading, and I hope you all like it!


	8. The River

A bright yellow charter van with the SnarkGames logo was parked to the side of the office building as Laura arrived for work Friday. Instead of her normal work attire, Laura was donning cut-off denim shorts and a loose tank top over a navy bikini covered in small, pink flamingos. She’d already applied two layers of sunscreen, and the tote bag over her shoulder had a full bottle for reapplications throughout the day, an oversized beach towel, a baseball cap, a change of clothes, and spare shoes. Laura Hollis was nothing if not prepared.

Perry was standing in front of the van with a clipboard in hand. “Laura, hop on board! I hope you’re ready for a fun day!” 

“Of course, Perry! I’ve been looking forward to this all week,” Laura responded, flashing a big smile.

Laura headed onto the bus and grabbed a seat next to Betty, who was snoring lightly with her head propped up against the window. Betty had texted Laura the night before inviting her out to “Thirsty Thursday” at one of the local bars—an invite that she had declined, opting to finish up some work from home. Apparently Betty had hit the drinks pretty hard if she was still trying to sleep it off. 

Laura chuckled as she thought about what an unlikely pair the two made as friends, but Laura wouldn’t have it any other way. She had grown fond in the weeks since they’d met, and she knew that it was good for her to be dragged out of her comfort zone by someone like Betty. Laura smiled as she pulled out her headphones from her backpack, queued up some of her go-to songs on Spotify, and leaned back in her seat, settling in for the hour long ride ahead of her.

The bus quickly filled up, and before long, they were pulling onto the streets of downtown Austin, headed for the highway. Kirsch, Scott, and a few of the other, more rowdy interns took turns picking songs to play through the van’s sound system, belting out the lyrics in unison. Carmilla grimaced at the song choices and the even worse live renditions being performed around her.

She sat alone in the back of the bus, a row to herself, with both legs stretched out across the seat. Her dark sunglasses were perched low on the bridge of her nose as she read a worn copy of The Fall by Albert Camus. She hadn’t been amused by the impromptu karaoke, but she held her tongue knowing that the whole point of the outing was to let employees blow off some steam and let loose. 

The hour ride dragged on for Carmilla, who was unused to sitting idly during work hours, but soon enough, the van was pulling off the main road and onto an unpaved path lined with oak trees. At the end of the road stood a glorified wooden shack—complete with peeling paint, dusty windows, and an elderly gentleman sitting atop a stool underneath an awning in front of the structure. The man waved as the employees filed out of the bus.

“Hi, y’all. Welcome! Gather ‘round and we’ll get ya in the water in no time,” the old man drawled in a thick southern accent. Carmilla couldn’t contain her scoff as she stood to the back of the group. A few heads turned her direction, but she just pointed to the man speaking to divert attention away from herself. After getting the obligatory safety speech, the group started picking out tubes and heading down the sloping yard to the river’s edge.

Perry cleared her throat to get the group’s attention. “Please remember to apply sunscreen regularly, everyone. We don’t want any repeats from last year’s company picnic. That includes you, Carmilla.” Perry gave Carmilla a pointed look and tossed her a tube of sunscreen.

“Fine. Laf, can you help me out?” Carmilla asked the chef, tossing the bottle their way.

“Sure thing,” Laf replied as they took a few steps toward Carmilla.

“Actually, Lafontaine, I need your help with the lunches. We have to get them loaded into coolers so the group doesn’t starve,” Perry said as she beckoned them toward where she stood next to four huge coolers.

“Sorry, duty calls,” Laf called as they jogged over to Perry. They tossed the bottle of sunscreen to the nearest person without paying much attention, mumbling as they continued toward Perry, “can you put that on Carmilla?”

Laura caught the bottle and stared down at it as though it could burn her at any second. Her eyes were wide as she glanced up from the bottle toward Carmilla and back down to the bottle again.

Carmilla saw the look of sheer terror on Laura’s face. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll put it on myself.”

“No! I will not have your sunburn on my conscience. It’s no big deal, right?” Laura said, trying to psych herself up more than anything. She’d been thinking about what Carmilla’s skin would feel like underneath her hands for weeks now, and she wasn’t about to pass up the opportunity to find out.

Carmilla shrugged in response as she reached for the hem of her black tank top, crisscrossing her arms in the process. Laura gulped as she lifted the shirt over her head, revealing a black string bikini that didn’t leave much to the imagination. Laura drank in every last inch of visible skin, her eyes trailing from Carmilla’s collarbones, down to the curve of her cleavage, past her flat, pale stomach, and finally ending at the unbuttoned denim shorts that sat just below Carmilla’s jutting hip bones. Laura willed herself to tear her eyes away from Carmilla’s body, deciding that she better apply the sunscreen before the situation devolved her into a drooling mess.

Laura opened the tube and squeezed some sunscreen onto her palm. She finally made eye contact with Carmilla and caught the faint hint of a dying smirk. She cleared her throat and gestured for Carmilla to turn around. Carmilla turned and hung her arms loosely from her sides.

Laura exhaled as she rubbed her palms together to spread the sunscreen evenly. She reached out and placed both palms on Carmilla’s shoulder blades, the skin on skin contact causing her heart to speed up rapidly. Carmilla shuddered at the touch.

“How can your hands be so cold when it’s 95 degrees outside,” she said, trying to play off how she’d just been turned into a shivering mess at the slightest of touches from Laura.

_Jesus. What was that? Try not to be a 14 year-old boy, Karnstein._

Laura reveled in the feel of Carmilla’s smooth skin underneath her fingertips as she slowly spread the sunscreen across the tops of Carmilla’s shoulders, working her way down Carmilla’s spine. Laura slowly pushed her fingertips underneath the bikini string on Carmilla’s back and worked her hands outwards until she could feel the slope of the girl’s breasts. Her hands stilled their outward progress, her fingertips dug in slightly, and Laura summoned all of her self control to ease her hands back around and down to Carmilla’s lower back.

Carmilla let out the breath she’d been holding in and released the tension in her shoulders as Laura slowly dropped her hands, grazing the tops of Carmilla’s hips.

“All done,” Laura said, her voice slightly cracking, “you should be able to reach the rest yourself.” Laura didn’t want to think about how she ached to spin Carmilla around and touch her properly—how if given the opportunity she’d map her entire body, so instead she ran.

Carmilla turned around and watched Laura as she rushed down the sloping grass toward the inner tubes— _rushing away from me._

She finished applying sunscreen to the rest of her body, and headed to the water’s edge to grab a tube for herself. She walked far from the group to an uncrowded bank and gently sat back into the tube, gasping as the cold water spilled over the edges and seeped up her backside. She closed her eyes and reclined back, letting the sun wash over her. She hung her arms loosely over the back of the tube and into the water, making small circles to propel herself into the slow moving current.

Laura, after testing out different tubes on the shore—finding the majority of them either too bouncy or too deflated finally settled on the perfect one. With tube in hand, she trotted down to the water, tossed the tube in, and jumped, stomach first onto it. 

This earned her a few cheers from the other employees, some of whom had already begun to drink despite not even being in the water. Carmilla looked at the scene from her spot on the river and chuckled to herself. Her eyes raked over Laura’s body, noting the fact that Laura somehow managed to make a swimsuit with flamingos on it look sexy. 

_Stop staring. This isn’t helping._

Kirsch barreled into the water, his tube perched on his shoulders. He waded over to Laura and secured her tube with nylon rope to his and then continued tying tubes together until he had connected himself, Laura, Betty, and Scott.

“Now we can be the four amigos!”

“Kirsch, I don’t think the four amigos is a thing…” Laura said with an amused grin. She added, “but let’s not let that stop us! Now where did those coolers go?”

“Way ahead of you, little hottie,” Kirsch said as he nodded to Scott, who tossed a can to Laura and Betty.

“Ciders for the ladies, brews for the bros,” Scott said with a wink.

Laura rolled her eyes. “Not that women can’t drink beer, but thank you. I do prefer cider,” Laura responded as she opened her can and took a big gulp. “Okay, you guys ready? Hop on!”

A few miles down the river and three cans of cider later, Laura was listening as Kirsch was excitedly telling stories of his fraternity shenanigans when her eyes scanned a small beach in the middle of the river with people huddled around.

“What’s going on over there?” Laura interrupted.

“Oh, that’s shotgun island. I figured you’d want to just stay in the water…” Kirsch responded. “I didn’t take you for the shotgun type.”

“Kirsch, I’m perfectly capable of shotgunning a beer. I’ll prove it to you.” Laura said indignantly as she hopped out of her tube and waded through the shallow water over to the island.

Laura pushed her way through the huddled group and toward the center of whatever they were gathered around.

“All right, I’m next!” Laura yelled as she emerged from the crowd. Her eyes widened as she saw Carmilla prepping a can for herself. Laura noticed that Carmilla’s skin was now flushed from the heat, and the ends of her hair clung to her neck, with small water droplets dripping down onto her shoulders.

_Wow. How does she always look so good no matter what?_

Carmilla turned at the sound of the now familiar voice. She took in the image—Laura stood before her, soaking wet from just having exited the river. The freckles on her shoulders and nose were more pronounced after the day in the sun, and Carmilla couldn't help but think for the thousandth time since they’d met just how beautiful the girl was. A thought struck her.

“So you’re my challenger then?” Carmilla said in a confident tone. “Want to make this interesting?” 

The crowd cheered loudly, with those closest clapping Laura on the back. She gulped in response and nodded.

“What did you have in mind?”

“First to finish the can wins—no spilling or pulling away. If you win, I’ll have breakfast delivered to the office every day next week. If I win, you have to be one of the SnarkGames representatives at the career fair next week.”

“Deal. I hope you’re ready to be embarrassed in front of all your employees,” Laura bit back, surprising herself with how confident she sounded.

“Oh, I don’t think that will be a problem,” Carmilla smiled and leaned close to Laura, her mouth only an inch away from the girl’s ear. “And don’t worry. I have just the outfit in mind for you to wear when you lose.”

_What?? Okay, don’t let her get in your head, Laura._

Laura shot her hand out with a determined expression plastered on her face. “Beer me, Kirsch!”

“Kick some ass, Laura!” Kirsch called as he tossed Laura a can. He walked over, pulling his keys out of his zippered pocket. “Here you go. You got this! Free food, free food, free food!” Kirsch began the chant, with others joining in until Laura was bouncing back and forth excitedly.

“You ready?” Carmilla asked with a devious glint in her eye.

“Always. Okay…one, two, three!” Laura punched her can with the keys and immediately pressed it to her lips, feeling the liquid surge into her mouth. She shifted her eyes to spot Carmilla out of her periphery, and immediately regretted her decision. She was so focused on Carmilla’s lips splayed across the can that she momentarily lost contact with her own can and sputtered out a cough.

Carmilla finished her last gulp and grinned triumphantly at the group. She patted Laura on the back.

“No hard feelings, right? Besides the SnarkGames mascot outfit isn’t that bad,” Carmilla snickered as she walked away and back toward her tube. “Alright, let’s get this show back on the road everybody.”

Laura dropped her head and headed back to her tube.

_Wait…did she say mascot?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks as always for reading!
> 
> I'll try to write a few chapters over the weekend so I can get ahead to the fun parts ;)


	9. Career Fair

“No. No way. I’m not wearing this,” Laura pleaded through the closed door of the bathroom stall. 

“Oh come on, I’m sure it’s not that bad. Just let me see. I promise I won’t laugh,” Carmilla responded. She had no intention of keeping that promise. SnarkGames didn’t even have a mascot—she’d made the whole thing up on the spot after winning the bet and had purchased the suit hours ago for her own amusement. The minute she saw it in the store, she knew that she had to buy it, and she was eagerly awaiting the big reveal. 

“Come on, my little Snark Shark…we have to rope in those college students. Aren’t you a Katy Perry fan? This should be a dream come true for you.”

“I’m not coming out,” Laura pouted.

“I think it’s a little late for that. We were at the same club two weekends ago if you recall…”

_Oh shit….we don’t talk about that. God. Stupid. Stupid._

“I mean it’s not like people will recognize you. Just come on. I’ll get you a hot chocolate after for being a good sport,” Carmilla continued, trying to change the subject.

“Ugh….okay fine. But only because I really like hot chocolate.” Laura took a deep breath and slowly opened the stall door. “You promised you wouldn’t laugh remember,” she said as she peeked around the now open door and stepped out. She held her arms out and did a quick spin for the CEO. “I hope you’re happy.”

“Oh, I’m ecstatic,” Carmilla responded, biting back her laugh as she looked Laura up and down. Laura stood before her in a full body shark suit. The only indicators that it was in fact Laura were the hazel eyes just visible through the black mesh of the shark’s mouth and the cocked hip stance Laura had assumed.

“Yeah yeah…shut it. Next time I’m picking the terms of the bet,” Laura grumbled as she walked past Carmilla and toward the bathroom exit.

“Oh next time, huh? You planning something without filling me in?”

Laura was happy in that moment to be covered head to toe in her ridiculous costume so that the furious blush rising to her face was obscured from Carmilla’s view. She shrugged and headed out of the bathroom, Carmilla following closely behind.

The pair made their way over to the table that had been assigned to them and began laying out flyers, job descriptions, and free SnarkGames swag—well Carmilla was laying things out. Laura mostly just kept knocking things off the table with her shark fins and groaning in frustration.

“You know, I’d be a lot more useful to you if I had full use of my fingers.”

Carmilla snorted. “Aren’t we feeling suggestive today?”

_Oh god. What is wrong with me?? I can’t believe I just said that._

“Okay obviously I didn’t mean **that** ,” Laura stammered. “I swear your whole mission in life is to embarrass me,” she added under her breath. 

“Look, this thing will be starting any minute, so how about you let me finish setting up and you can just work on getting into character, hm?” Carmilla asked.

“Uh…yeah sure, I’ll just go swim some laps then,” Laura replied, huffing down into the fold out chair behind their table. “Why are you working a career fair anyway? Doesn’t seem like something a CEO should waste their time with.” The question had been hanging in the back of Laura’s mind ever since she learned that Carmilla would be joining her.

Carmilla’s eyebrows furrowed. 

_Oh I am only here because I wanted to spend time with you._

“Talent acquisition should be important to any executive worth their salt,” she said instead, shrugging her shoulders as she straightened the flyers on the table.

Laura dropped the subject as she saw a wave of eager students dressed in business formal piling in through the gymnasium doors.

“Alright, Jaws. Time to shine. Remember there’s hot chocolate ahead if you impress me. Let’s see some of that killer instinct.” Carmilla chuckled as Laura shot up from the chair.

_Okay this girl is very motivated by chocolate._

Laura made her way over to the herd of students and started waving them over to the SnarkGames booth. Her shark dance was definitely capturing attention. A huge group was forming at their table, and by the end of the fair, Carmilla’s voice was hoarse from touting the benefits of working at SnarkGames to so many interested candidates.

Once Carmilla finished talking to the last of the students, she looked over at the tiny shark still swaying her fins and playing the part admirably.

“Okay, Laura. I’d say you definitely earned that hot chocolate. I know a good place not far from here. How about you get changed and we’ll head out?” Carmilla asked, her voice raspy from overuse.

She watched as Laura skipped away and couldn’t help the full volume laugh that worked its way out of her body.

_If only she could see herself…_

Carmilla started putting things away and breaking down the booth when she spotted Laura’s bag. She grabbed it and headed toward the bathroom. Laura would probably need some stuff out of this once she got into her normal clothes.

When she pushed open the door, she heard garbled noises coming from one of the stalls.

“Laura? Everything okay?”

“Ummm….well yes and no,” Laura responded.

“Laura, what’s wrong?”

“I’m stuck.”

“What do you mean you’re stuck?”

“I can’t get this suit over my head. What else could I mean?”

“Why are you taking it off over your head? The zipper is on the back.” Carmilla couldn’t mask the amusement in her voice.

“I realize that now, obviously. Please quit making fun of me and help,” Laura snapped.

“Cupcake, you’re in a locked bathroom stall. What exactly do you want me to do?”

“Just…I don’t know! Crawl under and help me? I really don’t want my obituary to read: ‘Death by shark suit asphyxiation’. My dad would never forgive me.”

“Ugh. Fine. This floor is disgusting though…you’re going to owe me,” Carmilla mumbled as she dropped to all fours and slowly crawled underneath the stall. When she made it to the other side of the door and looked up at Laura, her breath hitched. Laura stood, arms overhead trapped in the suit material, wearing nothing but a pink lacy bra and yellow underwear.

“Why are you naked??” Carmilla practically shouted. She watched as Laura spun toward her voice, the movement causing her abs to contract. Carmilla’s eyes raked over Laura’s exposed skin, trying to imprint every curve into her memory. Laura’s skin was flawless, supple, and just inches away from Carmilla, who still hadn’t managed to get to her feet. Her face was now directly in eye-sight of Laura’s crotch, a fact which made her mouth go dry as she scrambled to her feet.

“Please don’t make fun of me. I just…I really need your help,” Laura begged, her voice muffled by the fabric pooled around her head.

Carmilla gently reached out with both hands, placing them on Laura’s exposed abdomen. She felt Laura shudder at the contact, her muscles tensing underneath her fingers.

“Okay, I’m going to try to pull the material back down so we can unzip the zipper all the way. Alright?” Carmilla asked, her voice softer than it had been previously.

Laura hummed in response, and Carmilla watched the bundle of fabric move back and forth—a motion she assumed meant Laura was nodding her head. Carmilla removed her hands from Laura’s stomach and reached to the fabric over her head, gently pulling down until Laura’s shoulders were able to hang loosely again. She scooted the fabric back down Laura’s body, crouching down as she went. Once the zipper was visible, she stepped behind Laura and unzipped it completely so that Laura could step out the back.

“Welcome back,” Carmilla said to the still nearly naked girl that had turned to face her. Laura’s face was red from exertion, her hair salty from dried sweat was sticking to her face—the result of hours spent fully enclosed in the costume. Laura’s eyes were firmly fixed on the floor, too embarrassed to look up.

Carmilla reached out with her right hand, gently tilting Laura’s chin up so their eyes met. She gave her a half smile and pushed Laura’s hair off of her forehead so she could get a better look at the face that she couldn’t get out of her thoughts.

“You’re beautiful,” she said, just above a whisper.

Laura didn’t know how to react to those words. She wasn’t even sure she’d heard them correctly, but her body seemed to know the appropriate reaction and propelled her forward until she had Carmilla pinned against the side of the stall. Laura gingerly placed her hands on Carmilla’s hips, applying a small amount of pressure, and then she surged forward, connecting their lips.

Carmilla immediately deepened the kiss, gripping the back of Laura’s neck and pulling her in closer. Laura responded by pressing her hips into Carmilla’s and causing a pang of desire between Carmilla’s legs. “God…” she mumbled against Laura’s lips. Lips which felt exactly how she’d expected them to—impossibly soft but still firm and oh so responsive to her own. What she didn’t anticipate was how desperate she’d feel just from kissing Laura, as though she’d never be able to get enough. She remembered Laura’s state of undress and was immediately overcome with a desire to feel all of her.

_Wait. Shit. I can’t do this._

Carmilla’s hands loosened their grip on Laura’s neck and slid down to her still bare shoulders. She pulled back from the kiss and pressed against Laura’s shoulders, shaking her head.

“I’m so sorry, Laura. This can’t…I can’t do this.”

Carmilla hastily exited the bathroom, leaving a confused, half naked girl in her wake. Laura exhaled, squeezing the bridge of her nose in frustration.

_Shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. What the hell did I just do?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this got trope-y af. They're just too fun to write!
> 
> Thanks as always for reading :)
> 
> Let me know what you think!


	10. What Now?

It had been a week since the career fair, and Laura was consumed by the thought that every day she came into work could be her last. Carmilla would be completely justified in firing her. She had thrown herself at the CEO, who had just been trying to be nice. And sure, maybe Carmilla had been flirting with her a little— _she did call me beautiful_ —or maybe Laura had just misread normal interactions as flirting because she was so hopelessly attracted to Carmilla.

That was the worst part—every time Laura saw Carmilla at the office, her heart fluttered in her chest. She knew what Carmilla’s lips tasted like, felt what it was like to be pressed against her body, but she’d also been wholly denied. No room for misinterpretation. Carmilla did not want her. She hadn’t even spoken to Laura since the whole debacle—a fact that was soon to change as the prototypes were now complete and needed review. 

Laura spent the day clock watching, waiting for the time when she’d be face to face with Carmilla again. She’d obviously seen her around the office during the week, but never in close proximity and never without others around. 

She wasn’t confident what she’d do when they were alone again. Intellectually she knew that the best thing to do would to be to just pretend nothing happened. That’s clearly how Carmilla wanted to handle things—if her ignoring her all week was any indication. But Laura’s inquisitive nature wouldn’t allow it. She was a talker and she really wanted to get it all out there with Carmilla—to apologize for throwing herself at her and to find out where she stood professionally.

Laura had even worked out all kinds of ice breakers for the inevitable meeting.

_Hey, sorry I kissed you while I was half naked. It won’t happen again._

_Hey Carmilla, about that kiss the other day…that wasn’t weird was it? I didn’t mean anything by it. You know…gal pals will be gal pals._

_Carmilla, just so we’re clear—that was a great kiss, right? Oh you want to make out all day every day? Well get over here then, you!_

Okay maybe the last one was pushing it a bit, but Laura couldn’t always control her thoughts. Especially when the were Carm-centric.

_Carm? Geez, I kiss her one time and I’m already busting out the nicknames. Get it together._

“Laura?” Perry questioned, snapping Laura out of her daze.

“Oh hey, Perry. What’s up?” Laura asked.

“You ready to show Carmilla your prototypes? She’s free now. I just checked her calendar.”

Laura nodded in response and gathered her things. It was now or never. She just hoped that Carmilla would be receptive to the work that she’d put into developing the prototypes. She knew that she’d overstepped, and she couldn’t deny that there was still a small, lingering hope that Carmilla and her could be more than just colleagues, but no matter how drawn she was to Carmilla, she didn’t want to screw up her career for a silly, unrequited crush.

With laptop in tow, Laura made the trek downstairs and toward Carmilla’s office. She hesitated outside the door, taking a moment for a deep breath and mental pep-talk.

_Girl the hell up, Hollis._

____________________________

Carmilla was terrified. She had been every day since the career fair. Terrified that her stupid moment of weakness would get back to her mother and ruin everything she’d worked so hard for. She should never have been alone with Laura—she was well aware of how the girl looked at her—knew that she could have her if she wanted to. And she did…want her. That much was clear as the girl was a constant presence in her thoughts ever since the kiss.

It was a miracle she’d had the restraint to leave when she did…she did feel bad about running off on Laura, but had she stayed any longer the situation would have gotten out of hand. The kiss, though brief, had awakened desire within Carmilla that she hadn’t felt in years—the girl made her feel like a teenager again, and the insatiable, all consuming want that accompanied those feelings made Carmilla keep her distance. She couldn’t afford any slip ups or moments of weakness. Especially now that she knew exactly how responsive her body was to Laura.

And so, she had avoided Laura all week, only sneaking glances when she knew the girl wouldn’t notice. It wasn’t fair that she ran off and then ignored Laura—she knew that—but she couldn’t trust herself, and she had to maintain whatever semblance of professionalism she could. 

Carmilla didn’t think Laura would do anything so drastic as tell other people what had happened between them, but she knew she needed to apologize for her behavior and make it clear that it was a mistake that could not be repeated.

A ding sounded from Carmilla’s computer, signaling a new IM. She quickly read the message from Perry: “Laura’s on her way in to show you the prototypes.” Carmilla shot off a quick “thanks” and closed her laptop. Moments later she heard two tentative knocks. “Come in,” she called and then took a deep breath.

_Okay, you can do this. Just keep your eyes on the prize._

Laura opened the door slowly and stepped in with a meek smile plastered on her face. “Hi,” she squeaked out, clearly embarrassed. Carmilla’s gaze immediately raked over Laura’s body. She hadn’t seen her yet today, so she was unprepared for the short-sleeve button up Laura was donning—the gayest thing Carmilla had seen the girl wear in the short time they’d known one another.

_Keep. It. Together. She’s always cute…I can do this. Damn, are those oxford shoes? Ugh. Stop! Eyes on the prize._

“Hi Laura, come in. Sit,” Carmilla responded as she stood to close the door behind Laura.

With newfound determination to get her apology out quickly, she spoke as she ambled back to her desk. “First let me apologize. I’m so sorry for what happened at the career fair, and I can only hope that you’ll forgive me and believe me when I say that I had no intention of doing that. Nor will I ever do that again.”

Carmilla couldn’t help but notice Laura’s shoulders drop. That small signal of disappointment tore away at Carmilla’s resolve. She didn’t trust herself to elaborate so she eyed Laura, waiting for a response.

“Oh. Okay. You don’t need to apologize though…it’s not your fault. If anything, I’m to blame. You were just trying to help and I...misread things.”

_Of course she would blame herself._

“Laura. You didn’t misread anything. This just can’t happen, okay? Now, I think you have some prototypes for me to see,” Carmilla said, changing the subject. She hoped Laura would accept things as they were so they could move forward to a more healthy employee-employer relationship. 

If Laura put up any kind of fight, she knew that she’d immediately rip that shirt off of her and put her office to better use. She motioned for Laura to begin and held her breath to see if Laura would pick up on the lingering sexual tension or simply start presenting.

Laura, oblivious to the implication of her having not misread the situation at the career fair and happy to still have a job, chose the latter and began showing the app progress and demoing the prototyped pages. Once she finished presenting, she looked at Carmilla, any trace of embarrassment gone. “So, what do you think?” she asked.

Camilla bit back any disappointment that Laura moved into professional mode with such ease, and tried to do the same. “It’s really very good, Laura. I think we can move forward and create a beta to get some user input. Do you think you and your team can put something together in the next month so we can start a gradual roll out? I want a phased approach so we can get continual feedback and make adjustments prior to launch.”

“Oh absolutely! Should I go let everyone know?” Laura asked, her full smile making its first appearance since the career fair.

“Sure, and make sure you don’t stay too late. I know you’ve been sticking around after hours, and while I admire the dedication, I don’t want you to get burned out,” Carmilla said, with a small smirk. “Alright, you can go. And Laura?” Laura leaned in closer at the question. “You’ve done a great job. Don’t let anything make you doubt that.”

Laura’s eyes darted down to the ground, a blush rising to her cheeks. “Thank you. That means a lot.”

Carmilla looked away. She couldn’t handle how cute Laura was when she blushed.

_She has no idea what she does to me._

_____________________________

“So we have one month to get a beta built? Easy. How do you want to best put the Kirschster to use?” 

Laura had just relayed her conversation with Carmilla to the other interns, and of course Kirsch was the first to respond—only after raising his hand like an excited third grader and waiting for Laura to gesture to him though.

“We’ll figure out which people will work on which features tomorrow. I just wanted everyone to know what to expect in the coming weeks. Guys, I’m really excited about this, and I hope you all are too! Soon we’re going to have a real app!” Laura bounced from one foot to the other, her hands laced together behind her back.

“Glad to see your perk is back,” Mattie snickered under her breath to Laura as the group disbanded.

“My perk?” Laura asked, confused.

“Yeah, you’ve been mopey all week. It was weird. Don’t worry, it’s not like I care. I just was taken aback by the lack of squeals and hand clapping coming from you. Ever since your little field trip last week, you’ve been very shifty around Carmilla. Did we embarrass ourselves in front of the students? Make a bad impression with the boss?”

“Oh, no the career fair was…fine. Great, even! I’ve just been feeling a little under the weather. Thanks for checking in though,” Laura responded, trying not to give away anything that could get her in trouble.

“Hmmm. That sounds…passably plausible,” Mattie said the last bit over her shoulder as she sauntered away, clearly unimpressed with Laura’s explanation.

_Okay, that can’t be good._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this was a little late and not super long...it was a busy week! The girlfriend is flying to our home state this weekend though, so I'll have plenty of time to get some more chapters put together for this. I think it's almost time to start upping the ante. 
> 
> Hope you guys are ready!
> 
> Thanks as always for reading and feel free to let me know what you like or want to see more of in future chapters.


	11. Someone New

“Does it really count as brunch if we’re eating out of sheets of foil while sitting on a dirty picnic table?” Betty said, scowling at her breakfast taco.

“Betty, this is seriously the best breakfast food in the city! What would you have preferred? You can’t just live in Texas for school and never try a breakfast taco,” Laura scolded in reply.

“I mean I guess this is good, but still. Air conditioning is high on my list of ‘wants’ in a dining establishment. An airstream trailer on cinder blocks that happens to serve food is not my idea of a good time.”

“Oh hush! You love it!” Laura smiled as Betty took a gigantic bite.

“I’m glad you’re feeling more chipper. I was starting to worry about you. Everything all good? Any ladies I need to hurt?” Betty asked.

“Nah, I’m fine. I thought something might happen with this girl, but it would have been a bad idea. It’s probably for the best that things fizzled.” Laura tried to hide the hurt in her voice by stuffing her face with a big bite.

“Well you know what they say,” Betty replied, gently pushing Laura’s shoulder. “The best way to get over someone is to get under someone new! And I have the perfect girl. Do you want to get drinks with us tonight?”

“Uh…I guess. Is she cute?” Laura wasn’t really ready to entertain the thought of being interested in someone else, but she figured she couldn’t very well say no without Betty making her life hell.

“She’s super hot. If I was on your team, I’d be banging her right now.” Betty grinned at Laura, raising both her eyebrows twice for dramatic effect.

“Okay, let’s hope that visual doesn’t ruin this for me…” Laura joked, earning her a light punch to the bicep from Betty.

“Hey! Rude! Well anyway, she works at a bar on SoCo. We can meet her there and she’ll hang with us after her shift. Sound good?”

Laura hummed in affirmation and went back to work on her breakfast.

_Maybe a distraction will be good._

____________________________

Laura’s eyes bugged out of her head when Betty pointed out one of the bartenders—the girl was easily 6 feet tall, with hair a beautiful shade of red and an long, lean figure. Laura loved an athletic type, and from what she could tell, this girl definitely fit the bill.

“Her name’s Danny and she’s very gay and very single.” Betty wore a smug grin as she watched Laura gape at the girl. “Oh and you’re welcome,” she added, playfully hip checking Laura.

Betty and Laura grabbed a spot at one of the communal tables on the patio. The bar was huge and was accessible from the inside as well as through a rolled up garage door situated on a raised deck that overlooked a lawn covered in mismatched chairs and tables. Laura loved the vibe of the place, and she was pleased that both the venue and the view were appealing.

“I’ll be right back,” Betty said, striding over to the bar.

Laura watched from her seat as Betty engaged with Danny. She held her hand up for a small wave when Betty looked over her shoulder and pointed out Laura across the crowd. She blushed when she saw Danny raise her eyebrows and smile.

_Well she’s definitely pretty—especially when she smiles like that._

Laura watched as Danny whipped up a couple of colorful drinks, complete with twisted orange garnishes and sent Betty back her way. Betty walked back with the drinks and a knowing smirk on her face.

“Well I think I might have a future in matchmaking. She’s quite smitten already. But I mean I guess you’re a total babe and a super great catch, so you make my job easy,” Betty said with a chuckle as she handed Laura her drink.

Laura took a hesitant sip—she didn’t see what alcohol Danny had used to make the drink and she was really hoping it didn’t have any tequila in it. She’d been unable to drink tequila since her 21st birthday, and she didn’t want to be hit with a wave of nausea when she could still feel Danny’s eyes on her.

“Mmmmm oh my god this is so good.” Laura moaned as she took another sip. “Did she say what this is called? I think it’s my new favorite thing in the world.”

“Whoa, killer. Save the moans for later. You’re wasting your good material on the heterosexual,” Betty teased.

Laura laughed, tossing her head back. She was happy she’d let Betty convince her to come out. She was excited to be able to flirt openly—especially when the flirting could be reciprocated in public. Laura was taking another large sip of her stellar drink when she saw a familiar figure step out onto the patio.

“Hey, Laf!” Laura yelled, waving her hand to get their attention.

Laf smiled and wandered over to their table.

“Hey, newbie. Hey, Betty” they said, waving to both girls as they took a seat at the table.

“Hey! How come I’m newbie and she gets to be Betty?” Laura asked, her voice indignant.

“I don’t decide these things, newbs. The wand chooses the wizard, Harry.” They chuckled as Laura’s face twisted in annoyance.

“Ugh, you’re the worst. But anyway, what brings you out tonight?” Laura asked, her curiosity winning out over her feigned anger. 

“Oh! Uhhh…Perry is meeting me here,” they replied, a furious blush tinting their cheeks pink.

“Um, what?” Betty piped in. “Our super gorgeous coworker that you stare at every single day, Perry? That one?”

“I’m glad to see you don’t just act this way with me,” Laura smacked Betty, who only smiled wickedly in return. “But seriously, Laf. Is this like a date?” Laura added.

Laf shrugged their shoulders and tried to fight back a smile. “I think so? I don’t know…I don’t want to jinx it!”

Laura and Betty exchanged a knowing glance and assured Laf that there was no way Perry wouldn’t be interested in them. They’d both seen the two dance around each other at the office enough to know that there was definitely some unresolved tension there.

“Uh hey!” 

Laura whipped her head around and craned her neck upward to see who had spoken to the table. Danny was standing there with a huge smile. Laura’s eyes scanned down the girl’s body, taking in her full form now that there was no distance or bar between them. Danny had on a simple black tank-top and short black shorts that showed off the longest legs Laura had ever seen. Laura shot out of her seat awkwardly, realizing she’d spent way too long staring without actually replying.

“Oh hey, Danny. I’m Laura,” she said, sticking her hand out to shake, silently cursing herself for being so awkward. “Is your shift over now?”

“Yep, I’m all yours,” she said, winking at Laura, causing the smaller girl to blush.

“Great! Okay uhhh well you know Betty,” Laura said, gesturing in Betty’s direction. “And this is my friend Laf. They’re waiting for their date to arrive, so they won’t be hanging with us for too much longer.” Laura emphasized the word date, throwing a teasing thumbs up to Laf as she said it.

Laura didn’t notice that Laf had taken a picture with her phone, but she did notice them laughing as they typed something out.

“What are you laughing about?” Laura asked as her and Danny took their seats at the table.

“Oh nothing…I should probably go grab a drink and wait for Perry inside so she doesn’t have to wander too far to find me. You peeps have fun—but not too much fun,” they said pointing at Laura and raising an eyebrow.

“Oh god…sorry about that,” she said to Danny as Laf walked away chuckling. “They think they’re hilarious.”

______________________________

Carmilla scowled at her phone.

_What the fuck?_

LaFontaine had just sent her a picture with the accompanying message: “Interns spotted in the wild!”

The picture was taken from some outdoor bar by the looks of it, and in it were Laura, Betty and some overly tall girl standing entirely too close to Laura. The look the giraffe was giving Laura made Carmilla grit her teeth.

“Who’s the giant?” she typed out and quickly sent to Laf.

She waited a few minutes, and when she still hadn’t gotten a reply, she texted again: “Laf??”

The response came a few seconds later: “Sorry…on a date with Perry (shut it). That’s Danny. Laura’s date. The tiny one has game! Who knew! Gotta go.”

Carmilla opened the picture again and stared at it for two full minutes before tossing it on her bed angrily and heading to the freezer where she kept her vodka. 

_Her date? Fuck._

_________________________

“Soooo…what did you think of her?” Betty asked Laura as they waited for their Uber to arrive.

“She’s cute and nice. I don’t know if I’ll see her again, but I gave her my number,” Laura said, making sure to keep her voice neutral. She’d thought that Danny was very sweet and attractive. She’d asked Laura all the right questions and was enthusiastic in her own responses. The two had a lot in common, and talking to her was easy.

Had she met her a month ago, she’d probably be gushing to Betty right now about all of her hopes for their future relationship. But she met her tonight—a week after she’d kissed Carmilla—something she’d yet to get over.

She knew it was stupid to compare the two girls—one was here, interested, and hadn’t blatantly turned her down, but Carmilla was Carmilla, and Laura could not stop thinking about her. 

_I’ll just take it slow and I’m sure I’ll start to feel something for Danny. Yeah. Danny is a total catch, and I’m sure my body will catch up to my brain._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was really just an excuse for me to praise breakfast tacos. If you've never had one, I feel for you. Get yourself to Texas and make it happen.
> 
> As always, thanks for reading! I really appreciate all the comments :)


	12. Block Party

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for peeing in everyone's Cheerios by writing Danny into this. I think this chapter will make up for it :)

“Is it weird that Carmilla hasn’t been at work this whole week?” Laura asked LaFontaine on Friday afternoon.

“I think she put in some time with her mother at LK this week. She tries to stay informed of what they’re doing so that one day when she takes over she’ll know what’s going on.”

“When she takes over? She already runs one company…” Laura said, confusion evident.

“Oh yeah, but we’re small potatoes. She’s next in line to run the whole shebang. It’s pretty amazing considering her age,” LaFontaine replied.

Laura didn’t know what to make of this information. She’d assumed that Carmilla was happy where she was—running her own company and everything. She didn’t think of SnarkGames as small potatoes, but she wasn’t the heir to a Fortune 500 company, so she had no frame of reference.

 “Huh. I didn’t know that.” Laura said. She’d have to mull that over later, but for now she needed to be a good friend. “So I never got the scoop on your date with Perry! How’d it go?” She asked excitedly.

LaFontaine blushed and picked at a chip in the cutting board in front of them.

“It was pretty great, Laur. She’s my date to the block party tonight. You’re coming, right?”

“Oh right. I forgot about that! Yeah, I guess I’ll be there. I don’t have any other plans,” Laura responded.

“Well you should bring Danny! I saw the way she was looking at you. You can totally hit that if you want,” Laf said, gesturing for a high five.

Laura shrugged her shoulders. She didn’t want to ‘hit that’ but Danny had been asking when they were going to hang out next. This could be a good low pressure situation to do just that.

“Maybe. I should get back to work though…see you tonight!” Laura called over her shoulder as she headed for the stairs.

Laura pulled out her phone when she got to her desk and opened her conversation with Danny. 

_Maybe I should invite her…_

She read through some of their more recent texts and decided to just go for it. She wasn’t at all nervous—Danny had made it pretty clear that she was interested. She sent the text and got a response less than two minutes later.

_Well…looks like I have a date._

She tried to be happy about that.

__________________________

Carmilla spent her whole week immersing herself in all things LK Tech—tagging along with her mother to meetings, reading through the latest earnings reports, and sitting in on presentations about upcoming products. It had been a draining week, but it had provided a welcome excuse to steer clear of Laura.

It was stupid really. She had no reason to feel slighted by Laura—they were hardly more than acquaintances after all, and it wasn’t like she and Laura had any chance at a functional relationship. It would be unethical for her to pursue things, and yet she couldn’t help but feel the jealousy creeping in every time she thought of Laura being with someone else.

Throwing herself into her work had helped keep her distracted from her thoughts, but she knew she couldn’t hide forever. She had to get back to SnarkGames and make sure that the app development stayed on track. Monday would be a fresh start. All she had to do was get through the weekend—and the annual block party tonight. Carmilla checked her phone and was surprised to see it was much later in the day than she was expecting.

_Shit, better get going._

The last thing she wanted to do was go drink and be merry with her employees, but it was a summer tradition, and she knew she couldn’t miss it without causing a stir.

She sighed and gathered her things to head home to shower and change.

_At least it’s open bar…_

__________________________

SnarkGames had rented out an old warehouse space downtown for the event. A few food stands had been set up around the perimeter of the space, each serving different small plates. There were also five bars set up around a large dance floor—each serving different beer, wine, and liquor. 

Laura had already eaten half a dozen of the dessert options, and was eyeing the mac n cheese station when she spotted a familiar red head walking into the building. Laura headed toward her and watched as Danny took in her surroundings. She had to admit she had also been impressed when she arrived. Her company definitely knew how to throw a party.

“Well this is very swanky,” Danny said when she spotted Laura. “And you, look gorgeous,” she continued, kissing Laura on the cheek.

Laura smiled in reply and grabbed Danny’s hand to pull her over to the bar. Everything was free, and there was a great selection of premium alcohol, so she wanted to take advantage. She also knew they would have more fun if she got a little tipsy.

“Let’s get a drink.”

Laura downed her vodka soda as soon as the bartender handed it to her. Danny raised her eyebrows in surprise but didn’t say anything. She just sipped on her drink and watched Laura for an indication of what to do next.

Laura shifted from foot to foot, clearly uncomfortable. The first time she’d hung out with Danny she’d had Betty there to ease the tension, but this time she found herself struggling.

Deciding that an activity would probably ease the awkwardness, she leaned over to Danny and asked, “Do you want to dance?”

“Umm sure,” was Danny’s hesitant response. She wasn’t sure what to make of Laura’s mood. The girl didn’t seem very happy to be there with her, but this whole evening had been her idea—and Danny wasn’t about to say no to dancing with a beautiful girl.

Not many people were dancing, but Laura didn’t let that stop her. She intertwined her fingers with Danny’s and pulled her to the dance floor. She tried not to think about how their hands didn’t quite fit together.

__________________________

Carmilla entered the venue and headed straight for one of the bars. She felt like having a drink…or ten. She ordered her standard whisky and made small talk with a few of the employees in her vicinity. She figured she could make the rounds, pose for a few pictures and then head home to sleep.

Her eyes scanned the room when she spotted a giant redhead moving awkwardly on the dance floor.

_You’ve got to be kidding me._

She moved closer to the dance floor to get a better vantage point, and she saw Laura grabbing the giraffe’s hands and placing them on her hips. Carmilla seethed. She slammed her drink back and headed to the bar for another, her eyes never leaving Laura.

Her anger bubbled the longer she watched the pair dance, but she couldn’t look away. She brushed off anyone that tried to talk to her—preferring to just fume in silence.

When she saw Laura say something to the giant and walk off toward the bathroom, she darted the same direction.

_________________________

Laura was glad to see that there was no line for the bathroom as she approached the door. She turned the knob, and as she stepped through the door, she felt a pressure on her back pushing her in the rest of the way. She heard the door shut behind her and turned around, slightly panicked. 

“What the frilly—“

“What are you doing?” Carmilla cut her off through gritted teeth, walking forward until Laura was pinned between her and the wall. “Are you trying to make me jealous?”

Laura’s brain reeled. Carmilla’s body was inches away from her own, and she couldn’t think with the girl so close. Her brain searched for an explanation.

_Jealous? Why would she be jealous?_

“Carmilla, I don’t understand,” Laura said, her voice weak. She watched as Carmilla’s features hardened. Her gaze harsh and relentless.

“Why did you bring her here? Are you trying to rub this in my face?” Carmilla said, the hurt clear from her tone.

Laura studied Carmilla—she was surprised by how shaken the girl seemed, as though she was physically pained. The last thing she wanted was to hurt Carmilla—she had wanted things to go further, but Carmilla had shut her down. She was the one that ran from Laura. She was the one that told Laura she would never touch her again.

“Carm, you said that we couldn’t…I’m not trying to hurt you. You know how I—“

She was cut off by lips pressing against hers. Her body immediately responded, her arms wrapping around Carmilla’s neck. She felt Carmilla press her body into hers, closing any distance between the two, and she felt two strong hands grip her hips. Laura was losing herself in the moment—forgetting her surroundings, forgetting the circumstances of why this was happening, and forgetting the girl waiting for her on the dance floor. 

Carmilla nipped at Laura’s lower lip with her teeth as she broke the kiss. Laura whimpered at the loss of contact and surged her head forward to connect their lips again. Carmilla had intended to leave. She knew she shouldn’t stay, knew things had already gone further than they should have, but she couldn’t move once she heard Laura’s desperate sounds and felt the girl’s soft lips moving against her own.

Laura could feel Carmilla’s tongue against her lower lip. She opened her mouth and pressed her own tongue out to meet. Carmilla moaned at the contact, and it shot a pang of desire straight through Laura.

This kiss was different than their first. The last kiss was tentative and sweet. This was frantic, angry. There was need this time. Neither girl was in control and neither wanted to stop.

Laura flipped their positions and pushed Carmilla against the door, sliding a thigh between her legs. Carmilla ground her hips down to feel more pressure, gasping as she did.

“You don’t know what you do to me,” Carmilla said in between kisses, her voice raspy and laced with desire.

“Want to get out of here?” Laura said in response, surprised by her own forwardness.

Carmilla’s eyes darkened as she swept them over Laura’s body. She nodded once.

“Meet me in the back in 5 minutes. I’ll pull my car around,” Carmilla said, searching Laura’s face for any hesitance. When she didn’t detect any, she turned to leave.

Laura watched as Carmilla opened the door and poked her head out, checking to see if anyone was watching. She darted through the door and Laura was left standing there, dumbstruck, running her fingers over her lips.

_What the hell was that??_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thanks for reading!


	13. What, No Tour?

_Oh god…Danny._

Laura could hear the faint thump of music through the walls of the bathroom that she’d yet to exit. Her chest was heaving as she tried to calm herself down. She had to get back to the party. She had to find Danny. She had to think of an excuse.

She had to have Carmilla.

Laura glanced at the mirror and was relieved to find no telltale signs of her debauchery. She ran a hand through her hair, nodded to her reflection, and headed to find her date. It didn’t take long for Laura to spot Danny—the girl hadn’t moved far from where she’d left her and she was a six-foot-tall ginger. The odds of spotting her in a crowd were definitely in Laura’s favor.

Danny exhaled when she spotted Laura, a look of relief splashing across her features.

“Hey, I was starting to worry you were abducted or something,” Danny joked, chuckling as she reached for Laura’s hand. “Shall we?” She questioned as she nodded toward the dance floor.

“Danny, I’m really sorry, but I’m not feeling well at all. I think I’m just going to head home.”

Laura watched as Danny’s features sank. Her excuse wasn’t particularly convincing, but Danny didn’t push her on it. Laura refused the offer of a ride home, and was quickly making her way to the back of the venue to find Carmilla, trying to ignore how bad she felt about ditching her date to have sex. 

Laura stood waiting in the alley, nervously looking at every car that passed by.

_I don’t even know what she drives. Oh my god, I’m about to go home with Carmilla…I’m about to have sex with Carmilla._

The sound of a car rolling to a stop in front of her brought Laura back to reality. The darkly tinted passenger window rolled down and from inside the car she heard a familiar voice say, “get in.” Laura gulped at the demand, heat pooling low in her abdomen. She loved when a girl took command of a situation, and knowing how Carmilla was at work, Laura couldn’t wait to see how that translated to the bedroom.

She grinned and reached for the passenger door, sliding into the seat and closing the door in record time.

“Feeling anxious?” Carmilla teased, smirking at her passenger. “Buckle-up, Creampuff. We can’t go damaging those goods,” she added in a voice lower than Laura had heard her use before. 

She reached for her seatbelt, fumbled with the buckle for a few seconds, and then when she heard the click, she let out the breath she’d been holding in. She chuckled at how flustered Carmilla had made her and grumbled, “okay, can we go now?”

Carmilla smiled, put the car in drive, and sped onto the road. Laura kept her hands in her lap and nervously fiddled with her fingers, keeping her eyes trained on the window, afraid of what she would do if she looked at Carmilla. Even without looking, she could feel Carmilla’s amusement.

“You know, what we’re about to do is going to require some level of eye contact. You’re not going to be able continue ignoring me all night,” Carmilla said, removing her right hand from the steering wheel and placing it gently on Laura’s thigh.

Laura let out a shaky breath and slowly turned to look at Carmilla. She took in her profile—her hair was pulled back into a tight bun, accentuating her sharp jaw. Laura’s eyes traced from her jawline to her collarbone and downward further to her chest, where the fabric of Carmilla’s dress clung tightest.

_I’m so gay. So so gay._

Carmilla lightly traced up Laura’s thigh with her fingers, smirking as she heard a sharp intake of breath. Laura moved her own hands down to the seat to give Carmilla better access, but she paused her upward movement and gently traced back down to Laura’s knee. Laura whimpered at Carmilla’s hand going the opposite direction of where she wanted it.

_Guess she can’t take a hint._

Without taking her eyes of the road, Carmilla slid her hand underneath the fabric of Laura’s dress and abruptly pushed her hand up until she was tracing patterns on Laura’s underwear, reveling in the wetness seeping through.

“Carmilla…” Laura groaned, now desperately wanting things to speed up.

“You’re right. We should wait,” Carmilla responded, pulling her hand out and slowly licking her middle finger. “I just couldn’t help myself,” she added with a wink.

Laura’s head fell back against the head rest and she let out an exasperated sigh. She squirmed in her seat, rubbing her thighs together for some semblance of relief as she stared out the window pouting.

Carmilla flipped on her turn signal and pulled into the parking garage underneath her building. Once the car was safely parked, Laura launched herself at Carmilla, pulling the girl in for a searing kiss. “That…was…not…fair,” she said peppering kisses along Carmilla’s neck in between each word.

Carmilla chuckled. “As fun as this is, I have a very nice bed upstairs.”

Laura nodded enthusiastically as she unbuckled her seatbelt and shot out of the car. Carmilla let out a breath, shaking her head as she watched Laura jog around to her side of the car.

_This girl will be the death of me._

They made their way across the parking garage, hand in hand, to the elevator. As they waited for it to arrive, Carmilla let her hands explore Laura’s curves.

“I like what biking does for this,” she said, squeezing Laura’s ass.

Laura smiled coyly. “I think you’ll like what it does for my stamina too.”

The elevator dinged, and both girls hurried in. Carmilla pushed the button for the top floor, which elicited an eyebrow raise from Laura. Carmilla only shrugged in response before pulling the girl in and spinning her toward the wall of the elevator, pushing her against it. With both hands planted firmly on Laura’s hips, Carmilla ducked her head to Laura’s neck and licked a slow line from collarbone to ear, pulling the lobe between her teeth. She let out a hot breath, causing Laura to shiver.

“The things I’m going to do to you,” Carmilla whispered before gently biting underneath Laura’s ear. She moved her right hand from Laura’s hip up to her ribcage and traced her thumb along the underwire of Laura’s bra.

Laura whimpered and pulled Carmilla closer against her body, grinding her hips forward.

“This is the slowest elevator ever,” Laura whined, which prompted a genuine laugh from Carmilla.

“Patience is a virtue, cutie.”

“I don’t plan on being virtuous tonight,” Laura retorted pulling Carmilla in for another kiss. The elevator slowed to a stop and dinged—the doors opening directly into a private foyer. Carmilla grabbed Laura’s hand and pulled her toward the front door, unlocking it with a surprising amount of composure.

Once the door was open, Carmilla pulled Laura through, heading straight for the bedroom. Laura thought about teasing Carmilla for her lack of hosting etiquette— _what, no tour? no ‘do you want a drink?’_ —but she didn’t want any more delays. As soon as she spotted the bed, Laura took control and pushed Carmilla down, crawling up her body to straddle her.

The look in Carmilla’s eyes as she grabbed her waist spurred Laura on further. She placed her hands on either side of Carmilla’s head and ground her hips down, smiling when Carmilla canted her hips upward to meet.

“You’re wearing entirely too much right now,” Carmilla said, reaching for the hem of Laura’s shirt and toying with it between her fingers.

“Oh? I can fix that,” Laura replied, climbing off of Carmilla and standing before her. She reached down to the hem of her shirt and made a show of taking it off at a torturous pace. She let it fall from her hands and groped her chest before reaching for the front clasp of her bra. Carmilla’s eyes darkened as the clasp released giving her a view of Laura’s bare chest. She reached forward to pull the girl back to the bed but was stopped by a raised hand.

“Ah. Not yet,” Laura said, wagging a finger at Carmilla, smiling as she watched Carmilla bite her lip and drop her hands to the bed.

Laura traced her hands down her sides and back around to the zipper of her skirt, pulling it down while never breaking eye contact with Carmilla. She slid her hips back and forth and stepped out of the fabric once it pooled around her feet. She was left standing in nothing but a black, lace thong.

“I think I’d like your help for this part,” she said as she stepped to the edge of the bed between Carmilla’s legs.

Carmilla sat up and immediately grabbed Laura’s hips pulling her closer and placed an open mouth kiss on her pelvic bone as she hooked her fingers into the fabric and pulled down. Without removing her mouth, she looked up into Laura’s eyes and smiled against skin as she watched the girl shiver under her gaze.

Carmilla gently bit down as she slid a finger inside Laura, catching her by surprise.

“God…” Laura moaned, her knees buckling, causing her to grab Carmilla’s shoulder for support. She pushed Carmilla back onto the bed and clambered on top of her, careful not to dislodge Carmilla’s hand from where she so desperately needed it.

Carmilla slid a second finger into Laura, eliciting a gasp from the girl straddling her.

“You’re so wet for me,” she said as she sat up eye level with Laura’s chest. Laura wrapped both arms around Carmilla’s shoulders, tangling her fingers into Carmilla’s hair and pulling back to expose her neck. She ducked down and sucked just below Carmilla’s left ear. Carmilla curled her fingers in response and pressed deeper into Laura, causing the girl to moan into her neck—an action that sent an immediate pang of desire straight to her core.

Carmilla kept her slow pace, opting for deep, hard thrusts. She relished the feel of Laura’s hips grinding against her and watched, enraptured as the girl tilted her head back, breathless.

_Beautiful._

Carmilla used her thumb to rub gentle circles around Laura’s clit. She could feel Laura’s walls clenching around her fingers and knew the girl was close to coming undone.

“Are you going to come for me?” she whispered into Laura’s ear.

Laura moaned in response and gripped Carmilla’s shoulders, grinding her hips against Carmilla desperately. Laura was right on the edge, seconds away from orgasm.

“Carmilla…oh god, I’m gonna—“

A loud banging sounded from outside the apartment. Carmilla’s hand immediately stilled.

“Come on sis, hurry up! I need to talk to you!” a man’s voice called from just outside the front door.

_Shit. Shit. Shit._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys, I did it. First smut!
> 
> Also, I mostly only use tumblr to laugh at uswnt, Broad City, and Carmilla (duh) gifs. But you guys can find me [here](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/detrimentalsentimental) if you want to ask me stuff.


	14. Lack of Sunshine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in posting!
> 
> Big news though: my girlfriend PROPOSED, so I'm now engayged (see what I did there?)
> 
> So anyway, that happened and then I went home and had a lot of congratulatory stuff going on with family and friends. I didn't forget about you guys though :)

“I got a pocket, got a pocket full of sunshine—“

“Ugh no,” Laura groaned as she aggressively dismissed the alarm from her phone. There was a distinct lack of sunshine in Laura’s life, and she didn’t need her phone rubbing that in her face. She’d barely gotten any sleep that entire week—since her night with Carmilla and the subsequent conversation, she’d just been dragging herself to work, going through the motions, and then binging shows on Netflix, wallowing alone. 

She had finally broken down Carmilla’s walls—finally felt like she was actually getting somewhere, and then her brother had to show up and ruin everything.

__________________

“Come on sis, hurry up! I need to talk to you!”

Laura’s first instinct was to just beg Carmilla to continue. Every inch of her body felt like it was on fire from Carmilla’s touch, and she was so close. But then she noticed the look of terror painted on Carmilla’s face and she knew she had to do something. She slowly eased herself off of Carmilla, wincing as Carmilla withdrew her fingers.

“Laura, I’m so sorry. Um…can you wait in here?” Carmilla said, the terror in her eyes switching to apologetic as they darted from Laura to the front door.

In that moment Laura noticed for the first time that Carmilla was still fully dressed. There she was, stark naked, flushed, and frustrated and Carmilla looked like she’d just stepped off the runway. 

_How is she so flawless?_

Laura managed a nod, before she plopped back onto the bed, covering her face with her hands. Without another word, Carmilla exited the room, closing the door carefully before heading to whoever was at the door.

_I guess she has a brother?_

Laura heard muffled sounds from the living room, and she couldn’t help but get up and place her ear against the door to listen. She might be a software developer, but her childhood dream of being a reporter left some journalistic tendencies ingrained. The voices from the other room were hushed, but Laura was able to pick up most of the words.

“Will, why are you here? I thought you were in China for the rest of the month…”

Carmilla sounded agitated, which gave Laura a small sense of relief—she didn’t want to be the only one frustrated by being cut short.

“Mother called. That’s why I came to talk to you. She said you’ve been distracted lately…what’s going on? That doesn’t sound like you.”

“I haven’t been distracted. What exactly did she tell you?” Laura flinched at Carmilla’s tone. She sounded angry—angrier than Laura had ever heard her before.

_______________________

Carmilla’s feet pounded against the dirt path, her brow covered in sweat, her breathing labored. She thought she could run to clear her head—maybe she could even outrun her guilt. It had been a week since her night with Laura, and she kept replaying the events of the night over and over again in her head. She’d said horrible things. Things she didn’t mean.

_What could I have done though? Given everything up for her? I barely know her._

Despite knowing that she couldn’t let an infatuation jeopardize everything she’d worked so hard for, she couldn’t get rid of the nagging feeling that she’d made the wrong choice. She inhaled deeply, her shoulders heaving in the process, and picked up her pace.

_______________________

“What exactly did she tell you?”

“She said you spent the week at LK with her and that you were generally unfocused in all your meetings and inattentive during your discussions with her. Carmilla, all you’ve worked for since finishing school has been to get to this point. What’s going on?” 

Carmilla’s brow worried at the sincere tone of distress in Will’s voice. She and Will had always been close, but the air of competition between the two kept heartfelt moments to a minimum—seeing Will so affected by her behavior gave her pause.

_Maybe I need to stop all of this. I don’t even know Laura. She can’t possibly be worth my reputation._

“Look, Will, thank you for coming over here to let me know. I’m sorry you had to cut your trip short. I promise I’ll get things under control. I’ve just been a little off my game.”

“What are little brothers for?” Will said, the trademark Karnstein smirk playing across his lips. “Besides, I missed the food here anyway. Wanna go grab a bite?”

“Lunch tomorrow? I have some stuff to take care of tonight,” Carmilla said, ushering Will toward the door.

Laura backed away from the bedroom door and sat on the bed as she heard the conversation coming to a close, not bothering to cover up her naked form. She ran her hands along the sheets, closing her eyes as she let her mind drift back to the time before the interruption when it was just her and Carmilla moving in tandem. 

Every touch shared between the two was charged, igniting sparks on every surface explored. Laura hadn’t felt so alive in years. In fact, no one had ever made her feel the way Carmilla had, and she hadn’t even gotten to finish. 

Laura closed her eyes tighter and balled the sheets in her fists, worrying her brow wondering what Carmilla’s idea of ‘getting things under control’ would entail.

____________________________

“Laura! Just who I was hoping to see!” Laf waved from the kitchen as Laura came trudging into the office. “I tried a new brownie recipe, and you’re the only person that I know will try them before 8AM. Come on…I need feedback,” Laf continued as they smiled and wiggled their eyebrows.

“Well you do know me well,” Laura joked as she stretched out her hand. Laf’s eyes lit up as they pried a brownie out of the pan in front of them and shoved it into Laura’s hand. “Come on come on. Eat up! I need to know.”

Laura took one bite. Her eyes narrowed and she glared at the brownie and then at Laf accusatorially. 

“LaFontaine, what have you done?” 

Laf backed away, shrugging their shoulders and shaking their head.

“Laura, listen…we’ve got to start incorporating some healthier options. It’s good, right? Tastes just like a normal brownie?”

“La. Fon. Taine. What have you done? I can’t take more disappointment this week,” Laura said in response as she slowly closed the distance between the two.

“I just added some mashed chickpeas to the batter! You know…protein is important and all that?” Laf said, suddenly fearing for their safety. Laura looked murderous. “You can’t be this mad about brownies though. Or maybe I underestimated your chocolate dependency…”

“Ugh. Just don’t try to get me to test out your little experiments again, LaFontaine. I’m not just working here to be at everyone’s disposal all the time,” Laura said as she stormed out of the kitchen.

LaFontaine could only shake their head in confusion as they watched Laura all but sprint out of the kitchen.

_Geez. What’s got her so worked up?_

____________________________

As Carmilla entered the room, she spotted Laura sitting on the edge of the bed, a small smile playing on her lips. She hadn’t made any attempt to cover herself up—the ease of her confidence and effortless seduction made Carmilla’s mouth dry. She shook her head, trying to clear any sexual thoughts.

“Laura,” Carmilla started in an emotionless voice. “This was a mistake. I’m sorry.”

Laura looked to the ceiling, inhaling deeply while closing her eyes. She couldn’t believe it had only taken a 2 minute conversation for Carmilla to go back to her disaffected attitude. 

“Don’t do that,” Laura responded, rising to stand in front of Carmilla.

Carmilla willed herself to avert her eyes from the naked girl in front of her. Her next words would be hard enough to say. She couldn’t let herself get distracted by the object of her recurring dreams standing before her, completely vulnerable.

“Look, I won’t deny that I’m physically attracted to you. You’re beautiful and I’d be an idiot not to recognize that, but that’s all this was. I shouldn’t have brought you here, and this can’t happen again.”

“Carmilla, I know this isn’t just physical. Why are you pushing me away?”

“Don’t you listen to me? This can’t happen, Laura. I’ve worked too hard to let a fling with some naive girl keep me from getting what I want.” Carmilla’s facade cracked the slightest amount when she saw the look of hurt flash across Laura’s features. “You should go,” she added before she lost her nerve.

Laura tensed her shoulders, letting out a frustrated breath as she shook her head. She snapped her eyes up to Carmilla’s, an intensity present beneath the surface that made Carmilla cringe for what was coming next.

“You know, I’m not the one coming after you. You followed me, remember?” Laura’s gaze was harsh as she continued, “do not do that again. Just leave me alone.”

Laura hastily threw her clothes on without saying another word. Carmilla turned her back to give the girl some privacy and to compose herself. She knew her resolve wouldn’t last long if she didn’t avert her eyes from the scene. For someone accustomed to letting girls down, hurting Laura was taking an unexpected toll.

Carmilla sank to her bed as she heard Laura slip out of the room. Her eyes shut when she heard the slam of the front door. Her stomach sank when she replayed her words.

_I’ve worked too hard to let a fling with some naive girl keep me from getting what I want._

___________________________

“Carmilla, hey! Come here real quick!” LaFontaine called out from the kitchen. “I need some help and my last taste tester was in a mood. Can you try this?” they added as they held a brownie out to the CEO.

“It’s 8AM, LaFontaine. I’m not going to eat a brownie,” Carmilla replied in an annoyed tone.

“What is everyone’s deal today? First Laura and now you…is someone going around and peeing in everybody’s Cheerios?” LaFontaine tried to joke, but their laughter died off when they saw Carmilla look guiltily at the floor. “Everything okay?”

“Peachy. Look, I’ll see you later. I’m sure the brownies are fine. Why don’t you just get Perry’s input?” Carmilla said as she grabbed a granola bar and headed to her office.

Once the door was safely closed behind her, she let her head fall back against the door. She ran her fingers through her hair and thought of how Laura must feel.

_No, it’s not fair for me to care if I’m the one making her miserable._

Carmilla shook her head as she walked to her desk and sank in her chair. She knew she was doing the right thing—knew it was wrong to sleep with an impressionable college student who was also an employee. But knowing she was doing the right thing didn’t make her feel any better when she thought of how Laura’s brightness was diminishing more with each day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks as always for reading!


	15. The Truth Can't Hurt

Laura sat idly at her desk, watching the clock. She hadn’t managed to get anything productive done since she’d first arrived and snapped at LaFontaine, and now the day was winding down. Her week had been filled with days like this—hopelessly trapped in her thoughts, unable to focus on the very important and imminent deadline of the launch. 

Betty and Kirsch had helped pick up the slack, but Laura knew that she needed to do something to snap out of the funk she’d been in since her discussion with Carmilla. 

“Laura?…Chosen One? Ugh…Jesus Christ—Hey!” Mattie whisper-yelled to Laura as she snapped her fingers in front of the zoned out girl’s face. Laura jumped at the movement, spilling her coffee in the process.

Mattie scooted her chair out hastily, avoiding the coffee spilling over the edge.

“Geez…WHAT has gotten into you?” Mattie yelled at the flustered girl as she watched her try to minimize the damage of the spill.

“Sorry, sorry…I was a little zoned out,” Laura replied, reaching for more paper towels.

“Yeah, we’ve all noticed,” Mattie grumbled. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. Do you think you can keep it together for five minutes so we can talk?”

Laura looked at the other girl, tilting her head to the side in confusion. “Um…sure?” she answered hesitantly.

“Okay. Not here,” Mattie replied as she turned and sped away, stopping at the edge of the stairs to raise her eyebrows at Laura. “Well?…”

Laura gathered the sopping paper towels, tossed them in the trash, and followed Mattie. Mattie didn’t seem like the type that liked to be kept waiting, and Laura had clearly already upset her. She didn’t want to make her any angrier.

As Laura followed Mattie down the stairs and out to the patio she wondered what the other girl could possibly want to talk to her about. Her primary fear was that Mattie somehow knew about her and Carmilla—which would of course be her luck. 

_Great going, Hollis. Get caught after getting dumped._

Once outside, Mattie spun around and pulled Laura to one of the picnic tables. She gestured for Laura to sit down, keeping one hand gripped around Laura’s bicep.

“Okay, Mattie. What’s up?” Laura asked as she sat down, her voice tinged with anxiety.

“I need to know what’s gotten into you,” Mattie stated as she sat opposite Laura. She looked at Laura and shrugged her shoulders, waiting for an explanation that Laura wasn’t at all prepared to give. Seeing that Laura wasn’t in any rush to offer up information without further prompt, Mattie continued, “I mean I wasn’t happy when your app got chosen, but I understood and accepted it because you made a strong case. That was back when you cared. I’m not okay with being second place to someone that’s just going to be average—especially if you keep zoning out and leaving Barbie and the giant puppy to do your work for you.”

Laura raised her hand to cut in and defend her friends, but Mattie shushed her.

“No, you’re going to let me say this because you need to hear it,” she continued. “You’ve been walking around like some kind of lovesick idiot, and I don’t know who the girl is, but you need to just forget about her. I’m not going to just sit back and help develop a mediocre product. Got it?”

Laura’s eyes were wide as Mattie finished. She didn’t know how to respond to the impromptu pep talk, and she wasn’t sure Mattie even expected an answer. Her suspicions were confirmed when Mattie pushed herself from her seated position and leaned over the table closer to Laura.

“I’m only going to tell you this once: you’re smart and capable, and though I find you excessively annoying, I don’t want to have a front row seat to your little breakdown, so you’re going to do better. Starting Monday I will expect the old Laura Hollis back.”

Laura watched Mattie’s retreating form as she strode back into the building.

_What was that?_

___________________________

Carmilla sat reclined in her office chair, her fingers rubbing circles on her temples when her stomach grumbled. She cursed herself for not having taken the time to eat lunch. Since her awkward run-in with LaFontaine that morning, she had laid low in her office, which was devoid of food.

Deciding she couldn’t make it through the end of the day without at least a snack, she headed for the kitchen, hoping that LaFontaine would have already left for the day since lunch had been served two hours prior. Carmilla wasn’t one for apologies, so she hoped she could just avoid Laf until Monday when everything would likely be forgotten.

Once she rounded the corner into the kitchen, she saw a determined looking Mattie trudging in from the patio. Mattie spotted her and nodded. “Hello, Carmilla,” she said politely with a small smile.

“Mattie,” Carmilla responded as she glanced back toward the patio door and spotted a confused looking Laura sitting alone. “I trust things are going well?”

Mattie followed Carmilla’s line of vision and answered, “Oh yes. I just wanted to have a quick chat with Laura. Nothing to be concerned about.”

Carmilla’s eyes wandered back over to Laura. She raised her eyebrows as she watched the girl fold her arms on the table and lay her head down.

_Doesn’t look like nothing…_

“Sure. Have a good weekend, Mattie,” Carmilla responded. Her brain was cycling through possibilities for what Mattie could have talked to Laura about. She knew the two weren’t friends, so the likelihood that it was just a friendly chat was low.

_Surely Laura wasn’t talking about us._

“You too,” Mattie chirped as she headed back up the stairs to her desk.

Carmilla sighed as she turned her attention back to the patio. Laura looked defeated and that sent a fresh wave of guilt through her. She reached into the pantry, grabbing a box of cookies and headed outside.

______________________________ 

Laura lifted her head off the table as she heard the door open. “Mattie, I just need a mo—“ Laura’s sentence was cut short when her eyes locked on Carmilla’s.

“Sorry to disappoint, but I’m not Mattie. I come bearing a peace offering though,” Carmilla said as she set the box of cookies on the table. She gestured to the seat across from Laura and said, “do you mind if I sit?”

“You can do whatever you want, Carmilla,” Laura responded, catching herself off guard with the venomous tone she didn’t realize she was capable of producing.

Carmilla frowned as she slowly sat.

“Look, Laura. I said some mean things before,” Carmilla began, only to realize that she didn’t have a plan for this conversation at all. The two sat silently while Carmilla tried to think of how best to explain to Laura the circumstances behind her recent behavior.

_Well…I guess the truth can’t hurt._

“There are some things you should know,” Carmilla started, causing Laura to let out an exasperated breath.

“Carmilla, you really don’t need to talk to me about this. Message received loud and clear,” Laura interrupted.

“No, listen. This has nothing to do with you as a person, okay? My mother plans to step down from LK Tech later this summer, and when she does, assuming everything goes well with SnarkGames’ launch, I’ll be taking over as CEO. I can’t be inviting any kind of negative attention right now, and just think about how this would look to the media if someone found out—‘Carmilla Karnstein, lesbian CEO preys on young intern’—I just can’t let something like that happen.”

Carmilla paused, waiting for a response from Laura.

Laura mulled over Carmilla’s words. Sure, the explanation had made sense, but the idea that the media would victimize her seemed absurd—she was only three years younger than Carmilla, and sure, she was an intern, but couldn’t they just wait a few months until the internship ended?

“I don’t understand why you didn’t just tell me this from the beginning. You’re hot, Carmilla, but I could have waited until my internship was over.”

Laura chose her words carefully, not wanting to seem too eager to jump right back into bed with Carmilla. Though, her mind had been on little else besides Carmilla’s deft fingers the past week. Laura watched as Carmilla smirked and then shook her head.

“It’s not just the media. My mother is old fashioned, and I doubt she would approve. I’m in a position of authority, and I chose your idea. Not that your idea wasn’t the best one—because it was—but if she thinks that my decision making can be compromised in any way, she will not hesitate to replace me with my brother.”

Laura narrowed her eyes, tilting her head as she spoke, “So what, this is you…letting me down easy? ‘Sorry, buttercup, I know I already told you nothing could happen again, but I saw you were outside alone and feeling vulnerable, so I thought I’d come rub salt in your wounds?’ How chivalrous of you, Carmilla. Like I said before, just leave me alone.”

Carmilla shook her head, searching for a response. Why had she come out here in the first place? She had wanted to give Laura an explanation. The girl deserved that much.

“I just wanted you to know that this has nothing to do with you. I didn’t want you to think that you’d done anything wrong. You’re smart and beautiful and you deserve someone that can be with you fully,” Carmilla said, leaning in closer to deliver the last few words just above a whisper.

“God, Carmilla,” Laura scoffed, “Would you stop playing the martyr? You came over here because you wanted to make yourself feel better. This had nothing to do with me and my feelings. You’re hot, we had sex, you told me it couldn’t happen again—I got it. It doesn’t help for you to come over here and tell me I’m ‘beautiful’ and ‘smart’, okay? You don’t know me.”

Carmilla grimaced at Laura’s response. She had come over to get to some kind of closure and all she’d managed to do was enrage the girl. Knowing when to accept defeat, Carmilla stood from the table.

“I’m sorry. That’s all I wanted to say. I hope this doesn’t impact our working relationship. I do want you to be successful.”

Carmilla sped away back to the safety of her office, not stopping for food along the way—she’d forgotten all about her hunger.

Laura clenched her jaw as she watched Carmilla’s perfect figure retreat.

_I hope this doesn’t impact our working relationship?_

Laura laughed. She was tired of feeling sad for herself. She wasn’t going to sit and stew any longer. It was time to pick herself back up, get back to her top form at work, and get her Laura Hollis swagger back. She was going to make Carmilla realize what she was missing out on.

_It’s time to get even._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry my updates have been a little more erratic lately...things have been very busy since the engagement.
> 
> And sorry in advance for what will probably be another week-long drought. My fiancee and I are headed to Bermuda for a wedding on Wednesday, and we'll be out of the country until Sunday. I promise to post something when we get back though. The next chapter should be very fun!
> 
> And thank you to everyone that has commented or left kudos--it's nice to get validation that people are actually reading and enjoying this :)


	16. I Don't Think She's Your Type, Bro

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well...what a rough week. I'm still having trouble finding words for how I feel about what happened in Orlando. I'll just say to you all that I hope everyone is safe and feels loved. And please, keep putting good out into the world. Love will overcome.

“I think that hemline is a little short for work, and coming from me that should really tell you something, Laura,” Betty said as Laura twirled in the dressing room of a store with far more sequined items than Laura was accustomed to being around.

Laura stopped her twirl, smiling to herself as she checked her reflection in the mirror.

_Perfect._

“Okay, I’m getting it. Now I need to get some new work shirts…” Laura said absentmindedly, ignoring the confused look Betty was giving her.

“Okay…we should at least go somewhere that has sizes in even numbers though. You aren’t fifteen anymore, and I don’t think you can justify animal print tops for work—no matter what kind of weird mission you are on,” Betty said as she shook her head.

Laura shrugged her shoulders in response, closing the dressing room door to change back into her own clothes.

“Whatever, mom!” Laura called out over the door.

_____________________________

“Whatever, mom…” Carmilla grumbled after hanging up the phone.

“What did she want?” Will asked, concern etched on his face.

“Oh just the usual…letting me know that there’s more work to be done and not to get complacent. Typical mother daughter conversation,” Carmilla replied as she scoffed and popped the top off of her beer.

“Let’s talk about more important things,” Will offered. “Please tell me that you’re having better luck than I am with the ladies.”

Carmilla rolled her eyes as she turned to face Will, lifting her beer for a long swig in the process.

“I can assure you I’m having no luck in that category either…”

“What? The great lady killer Carmilla Karnstein not getting any? That can’t be possible! Let’s get this corrected ASAP,” Will said, a mischievous glint in his eye as he wagged his eyebrows. “Come on…it’ll be like old times!” he added as he saw the hesitance in Carmilla’s features.

“Okay. Fine. But I’m not babysitting you or playing wing-woman. I’ll get mine and you get yours, deal?”

“Deal! I’m going to run home and change. Pick you up at eight?”

“Yeah yeah…I’m not going anywhere,” Carmilla said, walking Will to the door. Once he was outside, Carmilla kicked the door shut and let her forehead settle against it.

_Great…_

_________________________

“Alright, Laura, I think you’re good to go. You could start moonlighting as a stripper now. I’d call that a success,” Betty said with sarcasm.

Laura shrugged her shoulders.

“Yeah, I guess this is enough. Okay let me pay and then we can get out of here.”

“THANK GOD!” Betty yelled, earning an elbow to the side and a glare. “What? It’s been a long day, and I’m ready for a drink,” Betty said, shrugging in response.

“Alright, your highness. Let’s get you to a bar, hmm?” Laura responded, skipping toward the checkout line.

She hummed to herself as she mentally planned her outfit for the evening. She needed to get some practice in her new clothes if they were going to be at all effective at driving Carmilla crazy at work.

She’d only loosely formed her revenge plan, but she was sure that she wanted to make Carmilla regret walking away, and her best bet at doing that was to go all out with the sex appeal.

_You got this, Laura Hollis. You can be sexy. You will be sexy._

________________________

“Jesus Christ, William. This place is so tacky…did you just follow a bunch sorority girls to find it?”

Carmilla looked around the bar in horror. There were pink chandeliers hanging above the dance floor, glitter painted walls, and some bubbly pop music was blaring through the speakers.

“Oh come on, Kitty…just have a drink and check out the crowd. I’m sure there are plenty of girls who would love to make you their little experiment.”

“Don’t call me that. And straight girls are such a bore, William. I’ll let you stay here for an hour, and then I’m taking matters into my own hands. Better make the best of your time…”

“Alright, point taken,” Will said, shaking his head as he headed to the bar. He caught a glimpse of two girls dancing in the corner and smirked to himself as he ordered two tequila shots. He laid two twenty dollar bills down on the bar.

“Change?” The bartender asked.

“Nah, but hey, can you send that girl over there in the corner a cherry vodka sour?”

“I don’t think she’s your type, bro. She looks pretty cozy.”

“Tell her it’s from her,” Will said, pointing Carmilla out across the bar and winking at the bar tender.

The bartender shrugged in response. “Whatever you say…”

_______________________

Laura was pulling hard on the hips of the girl dancing in front of her. She was struggling to remember where Betty had run off to, and she was having a hard time caring too much.

_Oh right…she’s talking to that guy…Brad? Brandon?_

A tap on the shoulder brought her out of her stupor.

“Compliments of that lady of there,” a bartender said gruffly to Laura as he pointed over his shoulder.

Laura’s eyes followed the man’s hand, and her jaw dropped when she saw Carmilla arguing with a dark headed man. Laura blinked rapidly and managed to squeak out a “thanks” at the fleeing bartender.

Laura’s dance partner stopped, turning at the sudden interruption. She held her arms up and scoffed.

“Seriously? You’re just going to accept a drink from some goth chick while I’m standing right here?”

The girl snapped her fingers in front of Laura’s face, but Laura was too busy studying the girl across the room. She watched as Carmilla shook her head at the man and slowly dragged her palm down her face. Carmilla turned to face Laura with a look of pure embarrassment.

_What the fuck is her problem?_

Laura did the only thing that her body registered as appropriate; she downed the free drink, set it on a nearby tabletop, flipped Carmilla off, and mouthed “fuck you” before pulling her dance partner in for a bruising kiss.

_____________________

“I figured it was a shots kind of night!” Will yelled to Carmilla as he approached, holding two shot glasses at chest height with an excited grin plastered on his face.

“You could say that again,” Carmilla said, her disdain for the establishment not yet forgotten.

“Oh come on. It’ll be fun! Besides, I already found you a lady. You’ll have to work for it as she’s currently dancing with a pretty hot girl though, but don’t worry—I got the ball rolling for you.”

“What are you talking about?” Carmilla asked in an annoyed tone.

Will pointed across the dance floor and wiggled his eyebrows.

“Her,” he said, leaning over Carmilla’s shoulder so her eyes could follow his point. “She’s cute, right? She’s got a drink coming her way courtesy of you. Don’t worry, you can thank me later.”

Carmilla’s shook her head frantically.

_No no no._

“Will, tell me you’re joking,” Carmila pleaded.

“What are you talking about? She’s hot and she’s definitely gay. She was all over that girl when we came in.”

“Will, she works for me!” Carmilla hissed. “Jesus Christ…what am I supposed to do? She’s an intern!”

Will chuckled, and placed a gentle hand on Carmilla’s shoulder.

“Oh chill out,” he said. “It’ll be a funny story. I’m sure she won’t mind.”

Carmilla sighed and let her head fall back in frustration. She took a calming breath and looked at Will.

“You don’t understand…” she managed to grumble.

“Oh dear god. You’ve already fucked her?” Will questioned, knowing the answer. “Well I guess I should have seen that coming since she has a heartbeat,” Will joked.

“It’s not funny, Will…what would mother say if she found out?”

Carmilla rubbed her hairline with her palm and then dragged it down her face. She turned in Laura’s direction again just in time to lock eyes with her. She watched as the usually bubbly girl slammed back her drink, flipped her off while mouthing the same sentiment, and then pulled her dance buddy in for a kiss.

Carmilla’s stomach sank.

_Well this isn’t good._

“Come on, Will. We should go…” Carmilla said, defeat evident in her tone.

Will watched as the tiny girl continued to suck face and then glanced back at his sister. He was unaccustomed to seeing her so affected. Vulnerable was not a state he had seen Carmilla in for quite some time.

“Yeah, let’s get out of here,” Will responded as he wrapped a protective arm around Carmilla’s waist. “But I want to hear the actual story about that one at some point.”

___________________________

Sensing movement across the room, Laura pulled back from the kiss. Her eyes drifted back to where they’d last seen Carmilla, only to find that she was gone. She scanned the rest of the room, and only caught a glimpse of Carmilla’s retreating form as she exited the club.

Her partner for the night leaned back in and whispered in her ear, “you want to get out of here?”

“Definitely,” Laura responded, grabbing the girl’s hand and pulling her toward the back exit—away from Carmilla.

Once they were outside the club, Laura pushed the girl against a brick wall and held her in place by the waist. She looked in her eyes for any sign of discomfort before lunging forward to capture her mouth. The kiss was hurried, sloppy, and Laura couldn’t help but compare the girl’s lips to Carmilla’s. Where Carmilla was soft and confident, this girl was hard and abrupt.

Nothing about the encounter excited Laura, but she was determined to get Carmilla out of her mind. At least for one night.

________________________

“Okay,” Will huffed out as he plopped onto the couch in Carmilla’s living room. “Are you going to tell me about her?”

“This isn’t going to be family sharing hour, Will. There’s nothing to tell, okay? I made a stupid mistake and got caught up in a little crush. I’ve shut it down, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

“I’ve never seen you so worked up about someone, Carmilla. She must have been a really good lay…”

Carmilla glared at Will in response.

“Just because she and I aren’t an item doesn’t mean you can talk about her like that,” Carmilla barked.

Will’s eyes widened. “No way! Oh my god, you like her, don’t you?”

“I’m not fifteen, Will. I don’t ‘like’ her. I don’t ‘like’ anyone. I’m just frustrated because I can’t have her.”

Carmilla picked at her nail polish, avoiding eye contact with Will.

“Whatever you say, sis. But seriously, why do you care so much? She’s legal…she’s hot. Outside sources tell me you’re hot, which…gross, but you get my point. What’s stopping you?”

“You can’t be serious! Mother would be furious. Can you imagine the field day our competitors would have if it came out that I was sleeping with an intern months before assuming the position of CEO?”

“Get over yourself. Nobody cares who you sleep with. I can handle mother, if that’s all you're worried about.”

“I’m sure you could,” Carmilla responded. “I know you want the CEO job for yourself,” she added under her breath. 

Will stood abruptly, shoving his hands into his pockets angrily as he leveled Carmilla with a glare.

“If that’s all you think of me, I guess I should go,” he said as he turned and headed out the door, slamming it in frustration.

Carmilla closed her eyes and took a deep breath.

_Fuck._

_________________________

Laura looked over at the girl sleeping next to her. She’d fallen asleep immediately after she finished—not bothering to return the favor for Laura. A fact that Laura was fine with as she’d been planning her escape ever since arriving in the foreign apartment.

Laura rose as quietly as she could, grabbing her clothes from the surfaces they’d landed on during the sprint to disrobe earlier. She turned the doorknob of the bedroom all the way before slowly opening the door and stepping outside into the main living area.

She slipped her clothes back on and headed home She didn’t bother to leave her number.

_Okay, so bad sex didn’t make me feel better. Back to Plan A of ‘Make Carmilla’s Life Miserable’. Yeah, that will definitely work._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for the patience! It was quite a hectic week between my trip to Bermuda and trying to get caught back up with work once I got back. Our flight home was actually cancelled on the tarmac because of an issue with the engine, so I got to go through customs three times in one day and spent about 10 straight hours in the Bermuda airport (yay!).
> 
> I didn't get everything in this chapter that I wanted to, but I needed some transitionary stuff and didn't have time to write a jumbo chapter. The next one should get back to the fun stuff!


	17. Got a Hot Date?

“Well, I certainly hope this new attire means you took what I said to heart. I hope taking pride in your appearance is just part one of getting back on your A game, Hollis,” Mattie said as Laura booted up her laptop.

Laura smiled at Mattie in response and thanked her morning brain for opting to wear a silk button down blouse with one of her new, tight pencil skirts. She’d been about thirty seconds away from wearing a low cut, sleeveless top before realizing that no matter how sexy she wanted to look, it was still important to be professional. 

“So I was thinking about our in-app purchases, and I have a few ideas…do you want to meet later to talk about them?” Laura asked Mattie. She received a curt nod in response and found herself fighting a smile.

“Okay, cool. I’ll grab you after lunch or something. Oh and Mattie?” Laura paused, waiting for Mattie to make eye contact. “Thanks…I needed to hear what you said last week,” she added once she had the other girl’s attention. Mattie gave no response and none was needed. The two understood one another and went back to work, Laura occasionally asking Mattie a quick question throughout the morning, but otherwise keeping to herself.

“Come on, little hottie—food time!” Kirsch broke Laura’s concentration at lunchtime with a small shove. “Actually, whoa you are an extra hottie today. Got a hot date after work?”

“Ugh, Kirsch. A woman can dress nice for herself. It doesn’t always have to be for someone else’s approval.” _It just happens to be to drive Carmilla crazy…_

“One of these days I’m going to compliment you without making you mad,” Kirsch replied, shaking his head. “Sorry, L,” he added.

“Oh come on, you big softie!” Laura chirped as she laced her arm through Kirsch’s and dragged him down the stairs to the cafeteria.

The pair made their way to the kitchen and into the line. Monday lunches were more extravagant than the other days of the week since LaFontaine had all weekend to plan. The employees didn’t waste any time getting to the kitchen for fear of missing out.

Laura was semi-listening to Kirsch rant about some sporting event that had taken place over the weekend when she sensed someone join the line behind them. She turned and found herself face-to-face with a flustered looking Carmilla. Laura watched as Carmilla’s eyes scanned her body, and she felt a small sense of pride as she noticed a blush rise on the other girl’s cheeks.

Laura turned her back to Carmilla and pretended to pay attention as Kirsch continued his sports talk. Laura smirked to herself. She had an idea. Without allowing herself to overthink it, she pretended to drop her wallet on the ground in front of her. She mumbled an “oops” before sliding her hips back and bending at the waist to pick it up. She felt the fabric of her new skirt tug at her curves as she bent over and smiled as she heard a sharp intake of breath from behind her. Laura grabbed her wallet and then snapped back upright before moving forward in line.

__________________________

Carmilla sighed to herself as she tried to think of the proper apology to send to Will. She wasn’t a phone call kind of girl, but she didn’t think she could sound contrite enough in a text. She had debated going over to his place the previous day but decided in the end to give him some time to cool off. 

Now, a full day after watching him storm out of her apartment, she sat in her office, staring at her laptop, getting no work done. She shook her head and placed her hands on the keyboard.

_Just send a quick email. It’s not that big of a deal._

She spent the next hour writing and re-writing an email until she felt comfortable with the tone. After reading through one final time, she quickly hit ‘send’ and leaned back in her chair, letting out a long sigh. She glanced at the corner of her screen to check the time and berated herself for wasting the whole morning on one email— _not going to cut it for a CEO, Karnstein._

Deciding that food might get her back on track, she pushed her chair away from her desk and made her way out of her office and toward the kitchen. The noise from the kitchen was deafening, and Carmilla wondered, not for the first time, how LaFontaine could manage to prepare food that was universally loved by people from such diverse backgrounds. Carmilla wasn’t paying attention as she took her place at the back of the line, only looking up when she sensed movement in front of her.

Her eyes locked with Laura, and Carmilla immediately blanked on what to say or do. Instead she let her gaze fall to Laura’s uncharacteristic choice of attire. Laura wore a silky button down blouse, tucked into a tight pencil skirt. She marveled at how the fabric clung to Laura’s body and couldn’t help but think of what she knew was underneath. Her cheeks pinked at the thought of Laura’s naked body straddling her.

_Carmilla, stop._

The tension in Carmilla’s shoulders relaxed as Laura turned around. She closed her eyes and pushed a quick breath out of her nose. A familiar voice uttering an “oops” brought Carmilla back into the moment. She opened her eyes just in time to watch as Laura bent over, her hips coming dangerously close, urging Carmilla to reach out. Instead, she breathed in sharply and balled her fists.

Carmilla had the restraint to keep her hands to herself, but she couldn’t tear her eyes away. Seeing Laura from behind—her ass right in front of her—gave Carmilla all kinds of thoughts. She bit her lip as she willed the images flashing through her mind to stop. Then, Laura was suddenly upright and walking forward, out of their shared space and Carmilla was both relieved and frustrated.

Deciding that food could wait, Carmilla exited the line and made her way back to her office. Once inside, she leaned against the closed door and let her head fall back. As her eyes closed, she was once again confronted with images of Laura bent over in front of her, but now, in the safety of her own office, she allowed her mind to wander.

_____________________

Laura spent the rest of the afternoon immersed in her work, not allowing herself to think too much about Carmilla’s sudden disappearance from the line at lunch. She was so focused on trying to tweak the menu design that she barely noticed when the last intern still in the office was packing up.

“Come on, you can’t stay all night,” Mattie said as she placed her laptop in her brown leather bag. 

Laura glanced at the clock on her screen, her eyes growing wide as she realized how late it had gotten.

“Oh wow, I didn’t realize it was after 6. I guess I better get going. See you tomorrow!” Laura called to Mattie as she watched the girl make her way down the stairs.

Laura started shutting down her computer as she hummed to herself. She loved days like this when she got lost in her work—when the only thought on her mind was how to make her code as elegant as possible. Now that her brain registered the time of day though, her stomach was all too ready to make itself known by growling with force. 

She shut her computer and packed the rest of her things quickly before skipping down the steps, deciding that yes, a food truck was a perfect detour for her to make on her bike ride home. She headed for the small gym in the basement of the building to change out of her new clothes. She’d grown accustomed to commuting in her work clothes, but her new skirt wasn’t conducive to pedaling—though it did wonders for her self esteem.

__________________________

Carmilla turned the volume up as she toweled off her face. She loved running a tech company on nights like this. Most gyms in the city would be crawling with douchebags with terrible lifting form asking her if she needed a spot. But not her gym. Her employees loved an after work drink, so she had the run of the whole facility most nights.

She’d opted to do a boxing circuit to work out some of her earlier frustration. She found herself feeling lighter with each punch landed. Her last round of forty-five seconds left her drenched in sweat, so she shed her shirt and queued up some Yeah Yeah Yeahs to help her push through her final round at the heavy bag.

After a quick swig of water, she started throwing a few jabs, making sure to stay light on her feet. Carmilla made her way around the bag, throwing punches furiously as she let all of her frustration pour out. As she neared the one minute mark and the end of her round, she threw harder and faster hooks before finally wrapping her exhausted arms around the bag to keep herself upright.

__________________________

Laura stood frozen in the doorway to the gym, stunned as she watched a shirtless Carmilla dance around a huge punching bag. Carmilla was glistening with sweat, and Laura watched in awe as her abs contracted with each swing. The definition of muscle in the girl’s arms was more and more pronounced with each swing, and Laura found her mouth drying up at the sight.

Carmilla’s eyes had an animalistic quality to them, like a lion sizing up its prey, as she strung together combinations of punches. Laura was enraptured. So much so that when Carmilla wrapped her arms around the bag and hung loosely, utterly spent, she forgot to sneak off. Instead she stood, unable to peel her eyes away.

Carmilla peered around the bag when the song playing through the speakers ended, raising her eyebrows as she spotted Laura.

_Oops._

______________________

Confused by Laura’s sudden presence, Carmilla said, “I’m just finishing up. The gym is all yours.” She began unwrapping her hands as she watched Laura fidget with her bag, keeping her eyes trained on the floor.

“I actually was just headed to the locker room…can’t bike home in this,” Laura said as she gestured to her new outfit.

Carmilla raised one eyebrow in response and gestured to the locker room behind her.

“Don’t let me stop you.”

Laura let out a shaky breath as her eyes scanned Carmilla’s body. Carmilla managed to keep her smirk at bay as she watched the girl realize she was staring. Laura shook her head almost imperceptibly and made her way into the locker room.

She waited a few minutes before following Laura. Her original intention was to wait until Laura left, but her body betrayed her brain as she made for the door. Carmilla opened the door to find Laura standing in nothing but a sports bra and shorts.

_Jesus Christ…_

_________________________

Once she was safely in the locker room, Laura plopped down on a bench and tried to catch her breath. Seeing Carmilla in such a state of intensity and undress had worked her up. She needed to change and get home so she could do something about it. It wouldn’t be the first time that she’d thought of Carmilla while touching herself, and now that she had such vivd images, she knew that it wouldn’t be the last.

Laura began unbuttoning her blouse without standing up, deciding that it was safer not to rely on her legs to keep her upright at the moment. Once she’d discarded her blouse, she changed into a sports bra and unzipped her skirt. It took some swaying of the hips and a few tugs to get the skirt off, but once it was removed, she quickly replaced it with shorts.

Laura turned as she heard the door open, and she found herself at a loss for words as she looked at Carmilla and saw her same desire mirrored in the girl’s face. Laura gulped as she watched Carmilla’s eyes travel up and down her body. She bit her lip and took a step toward her, smiling as she watched Carmilla’s fingers twitch at the close proximity.

She leaned up toward Carmilla’s ear and whispered, “See you tomorrow, boss” before turning, throwing a t-shirt on, grabbing her bag, and heading out of the room.

_Wow, did I just do that?_

________________________

Carmilla collapsed onto the bench after Laura left.

_Did she just do that?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks as always for reading!
> 
> Also, yes Laura used the Bend & Snap...Legally Blonde had a lot of great lessons, and I have no shame in working that in.
> 
> I hope you all enjoyed it :)


	18. Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this is later than usual, again. It's a little bit longer than the last few chapters, so I hope you guys enjoy!

Laura studied her reflection in the mirror, deciding what to wear as she thought back on her week. Her intention had been to drive Carmilla crazy, but in looking back at their encounters since Monday, the only thing she’d managed to do was remind herself how attracted she was to Carmilla. Every interaction felt charged—even just making eye contact across crowded rooms, and now Laura found herself thinking which of her clothes Carmilla would appreciate most.

She knew it was pathetic to seek approval from someone that had already turned her down, but the hopeful part of her brain continued to think back to the moments during the week when she’d caught Carmilla eyeing her. If nothing else, Laura knew that Carmilla was still definitely attracted to her—that much was clear from their almost moment in the locker room.

Carmilla had been nothing but nice to her this week, and with each passing day Laura thought more and more that maybe they could manage a friendship after all.

_Right. Friends._

She nodded to herself as she opted for a sleeveless t-shirt and a loose skirt that hit mid shins.

_Nothing too revealing._

________________________

Carmilla sat in her office, head tilted back against her reclined office chair, staring at the ceiling. It had been a confusing week for her. First she had a hard time keeping her eyes off of Laura, enjoying the tighter clothes and flirty behavior more than she should. But as the week progressed, she started appreciating the small moments. Shared glances, quick acknowledgements in common areas, and chats about Laura’s progress on the project.

In all the sexually charged encounters the two had since Laura joined the company, Carmilla never took the time to get to know Laura beyond the physical. Now that Carmilla was getting that opportunity, she found herself enjoying the intern’s company and looking forward to each work day—which is how she ended up being the first person into the office on a Friday.

She could hear muffled sounds through her office door and smiled as she realized her bi-weekly check-in with Laura was a few short hours away.

_Maybe I’ll ask if she has weekend plans. That’s what friends do, right? Yeah. Yeah, that’s totally friendly._

________________________

“Yo, Laura! What are we doing this weekend?” Betty asked, clapping a hand on Laura’s shoulder, catching the girl by surprise.

“Ah!” Laura squealed, her hand rising to cover her chest as she exhaled and shot Betty a look. “Jesus, Betty! You can’t just sneak up on me like that…”

Betty shrugged her shoulders and waved Laura off.

“Yeah yeah…sorry you’re so jumpy. But seriously, what are we doing?”

“I thought I might just take it easy this weekend. Get caught up on some laundry and just watch Netflix or something.”

“Ugh…okay you are so lame.” Betty chided, shaking her head. “Oh! Kirsch!”

Laura watched as her friend bounded away to catch up with Kirsch, presumably to make more interesting plans. She smiled as she thought of how nice it would be to have a relaxing weekend for a change. It was nice to not feel the urge to seek out a hook up.

Laura checked her calendar and got excited at the realization that her meeting with Carmilla was in less than an hour. She pulled up her notes began preparing.

_________________________

Carmilla stared at the clock, waiting for the new hour that signaled her meeting with Laura. Seconds after the clock ticked over, she heard a knock on her door. She tried to contain her smile as she called out.

“Come in!”

The door opened slowly to reveal a smiling Laura peeking into the office.

“Hey, are you ready for our meeting?” she said in a light tone.

“Sure sure, come on in,” Carmilla responded, gesturing for Laura to sit. “Busy week for you, huh? Ready for this day to be over?”

“This week hasn’t been too bad, actually,” Laura responded—a blush rising to her cheeks as she smiled and cast her eyes downward. “I just have to get through this one meeting with my real pain of a boss,” Laura continued, her smile wide.

Carmilla raised an eyebrow in response before smiling and playing along.

“Your boss sounds like a real bitch. How do you do it, Laura Hollis?”

“We all have our burdens to bear. I’m no hero,” Laura responded, shrugging her shoulders. 

Carmilla smothered a laugh as she shook her head and pulled up her meeting notes on her laptop. They had real business to discuss even if she would rather just enjoy Laura’s company.

“Let’s get to it, shall we? I’ve got some things that I want you to focus on in the upcoming sprint.”

Laura nodded along as Carmilla spoke, taking notes at a furious pace—interjecting her thoughts and opinions as the discussion went along. The meeting moved quickly with both girls having much to talk about. Carmilla was surprised when she checked the clock and realized that they’d used up most of their hour. Not wanting to miss out on her opportunity to solidify their newfound friendship, Carmilla asked Laura if she had any plans for the weekend.

“Nope, I think I’ll just be chilling for the most part. Probably some Netflix and cleaning. I really should hit the gym too,” Laura responded.

“I’ll be at the lake tomorrow morning for a run if you want to join?”

_Where did that come from? Was that a weird thing to say? Shit…_

Carmilla watched as Laura mulled over her invitation, her palms growing sweaty as she waited for a response. They were just getting back to a good place, and now she feared she’d ruined it.

“Yeah sure. Sounds fun,” Laura answered after a few moments of silence.

Carmilla felt relief flood through her at the response.

“Okay, great. Meet you at the boat house at 8:30?”

“Sure, see you there,” Laura said as she stood and gathered her things. Approaching the door, she turned and added, “have a good night” before opening the door and leaving Carmilla’s office.

Once the door was safely closed, Carmilla let out a huff of air and shook her head.

_Good. A nice friendly run. No big deal._

____________________

Laura spent her Friday night getting caught up with Broad City and cleaning up around her house. The night, like most uneventful evenings, went by quicker than Laura expected. As she laid her head down to go to bed later in the evening, she thought of her morning plans and hoped to herself that she didn’t do anything embarrassing.

_Okay, no throwing elbows or falling in large bodies of water. Just two friends going for a quick jog—nothing weird or embarrassing has to happen._

The next morning, Laura fumbled to grab her phone and stop the incessant blaring of her alarm. Once she finally swiped the alarm off, she let her head fall back into the pillow with an annoyed sigh.

_Why on earth did I agree to wake up so early to go for a run?_

She swung her legs off the bed and sat up, wiping at her eyes with the backs of her hands. She yawned as she stretched her arms above her head. She stood up and heading to wet her face before she could change her mind and collapse back into bed.

A few minutes later, after brushing her teeth and changing into running tights and a tank top, she mounted her bike and headed toward the lake.

_________________________

Carmilla stood from her stretch to scan the area again—she’d arrived thirty minutes early after being too wound up to sleep in or relax at home. Now that it was nearing eight-thirty, she couldn’t help but look around for Laura every fifteen seconds.

_You look ridiculous._

She shook her head, mentally promising herself to focus on stretching until Laura got there. The last thing she wanted to do was embarrass herself with an injury. With newfound determination, she bent over into a hamstring stretch, exhaling slowly as she deepened the stretch. She held her stretch for several seconds before standing upright and grabbing her right foot to stretch out her quads.

A throat cleared behind her, and she turned to see Laura with flushed cheeks and a slight sweat built up.

“Sorry, I didn’t want to interrupt,” Laura said sheepishly. “You looked…um…tight? Hamstrings are very important,” she added, averting her eyes to the ground.

Carmilla smirked knowing that Laura had been checking out her ass.

“Well thank you for keeping my safety in mind. I’d be happy to help stretch you out if you want?” Carmilla responded, playing up an innocent smile as she stepped closer to Laura.

_Friends flirt, right?_

Laura shook her head as she chuckled.

“Good to know. I biked here though, so I’m ready to go when you are…oh and you should know, I’m very competitive…and fast,” Laura said as she took off down the path.

Carmilla smiled, looking around to see if anyone else had witnessed the goofy interaction. After realizing that no one was around to share in her amusement and that Laura was moving at a surprising pace, she headed after her at a full stride.

________________________

Laura’s legs ached, and she was having a hard time taking full breaths as her right side felt like it was being stabbed with each intake of air. She hadn’t run further than a mile in over a year, and here she was on her third mile, feeling like she was going to die at any moment. Carmilla look unfazed, which Laura found both attractive and infuriating.

_Of course she’s smart, sexy, and athletic…why wouldn’t she be?_

Just as Laura was considering how her dad would react to the news of his daughter dying while jogging, Carmilla slowed her pace to a walk. Laura immediately doubled over and wobbled off the path, collapsing into a patch of grass.

Carmilla turned at the movement. “Hey no no no…you can’t just sit. You’ll cramp up!”

Laura turned from Carmilla’s outstretched hands and laid her body flat on the ground, looking up at the sky.

“No. No way. You’re not making me get up,” Laura grumbled.

Carmilla huffed and then sat on the ground next to her running partner. She straightened her legs in front of her and grabbed her toes, pulling back gently.

“Well if we’re going to sit, I’m at least going to stretch. I, unlike some people, enjoy being able to walk without limping.”

Laura used what little energy she had left to nudge Carmilla with her leg, smiling when the girl turned to look at her.

“You’re missing the clouds though. We never have this many clouds in the summer,” Laura said, shielding her face from the sun with her right hand and pointing toward the sky with her left.

Carmilla sighed and leaned back onto the ground, shoulder to shoulder with Laura.

“That one looks like a bunny,” Carmilla said, pointing toward a cluster of clouds, tracing the shape with her finger.

Laura couldn’t contain her laugh. “Did I just hear THE Carmilla Karnstein say the word ‘bunny’? What happened to the tough badass we’ve all come to know?”

Carmilla rolled her eyes and pushed Laura’s shoulder, eliciting more laughter. Laura fought to catch her breath and subdue her giggles long enough to ask if Carmilla wanted to grab some food.

“Sure thing. I know just the place.”

_________________________

“Are you sure this is the right place?” Laura asked as they approached a run down building with bars on the windows.

Carmilla smiled and raised her eyebrows as she opened the door and waved Laura in.

“Trust me,” she whispered to Laura as she stepped past her and into the restaurant, placing her hand on the small of Laura’s back as she walked in behind her.

Carmilla watched as Laura’s eyes widened at the interior—she knew the place was a little rough around the edges. The walls were made of cinder block, the floor was bowed and peeling, the tables were all beat up around the edges, and there wasn’t a single chair that didn’t wobble, but Carmilla loved it, and in all her years in Austin, she’d yet to find a place that made better migas.

“Senorita!” a man yelled excitedly as he spotted Carmilla. He grabbed two menus and waved the pair over. “You brought an amiga this time,” the man said with a beaming smile, putting his hand out to shake Laura’s.

Carmilla watched in awe as Laura conversed in perfect Spanish. She sat and raised her eyebrows as Laura sat across from her.

“Spanish, huh?” she questioned. "What did you guys talk about?"

Laura shrugged her shoulders as though it was nothing. “I’m good with languages...and you don't need to worry about what we talked about,” she added, winking.

_So full of surprises…_

“Do you like migas? I figured we could share…the portions here are huge,” Carmilla said, earning a nod from Laura.

____________________

“Oh my god,” Laura moaned as she took her first bite of food. “Carm, this is amazing!”

“I told you to trust me,” Carmilla answered, piling a generous amount onto a tortilla.

“You have my full trust now. I would follow you anywhere,” Laura responded before shoveling another forkful into her mouth.

“Is that so? In that case, I know a great vintage store nearby. I’ve been wanting to find a new hat, and I could use a second opinion…”

“Carm, I’d be happy to be the person to tell you that you look like an idiot. Everybody needs that person in their life.”

“Wow. What? You don't think I could rock a hat?” Carmilla asked, gasping in mock offense.

Laura smirked in response.

“I mean…I’m just saying that I look pretty damn good in hats. Maybe you should leave it to the pros. I’d be happy to show you how it’s done though.”

“I hope you’re ready to put your money where your mouth is,” Carmilla answered suggestively. “You’re cute, but I have been told by many women how great I look in a hat.”

“Hate to break it to you,” Laura responded, placing her hand over Carmilla’s and putting on her most serious face, “but they were just trying to get in your pants.”

Carmilla snorted.

“Well good thing we don’t have to worry about that with you, hm?”

Laura’s smile faltered for a fraction of a second before she pulled her hand back to her side of the table and arranged another bite on her fork.

_Right. Friends._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I changed my mind a few times on how this chapter was going to play out. I think this way allowed for the characters to develop a teensy bit, but I know it was pretty boring. The next chapter will be more eventful.
> 
> By the way, I'm heading to Toronto on Saturday, so if there are any Canadians (or people that just know Toronto well) reading this that have recommendations, please let me know what I shouldn't miss :)
> 
> We'll be there for 7 days, so I'm not sure when the next chapter will be posted. Depends on if I feel productive on the flight.


	19. Because That Won't Be Weird At All, Boss

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! I intended to write a little bit while I was in Toronto, but that city is magical and I ended up spending pretty much every waking hour exploring.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you guys enjoy the chapter!

The fitting room smelled of patchouli and lavender, and every visible surface was covered in at least a quarter inch of dust, but Laura couldn’t contain her smile as she listened to Carmilla mumble to herself from the other side of a velvet curtain drawn closed.

“These pants are a fucking nightmare…I can’t believe I agreed to this.”

“Oh Caaaarm?” Laura called out in a sing-song voice.

“What?” Carmilla huffed in response.

“Are you going to come out? You promised, remember?”

Laura stifled a laugh as she heard Carmilla exhale sharply.

“I swear to god…if you laugh,” Carmilla said under her breath as she pulled the curtain open and stepped into Laura’s view.

Laura clapped both hands over her mouth, her eyebrows shooting up as she took in the sight before her.

Carmilla was wearing white-washed bellbottom jeans, a long sleeve paisley blouse, and an oversized denim vest along with the angriest scowl Laura had ever seen the girl muster.

“Oh my god, Carm! Who knew you could look so cute?” Laura said, standing up to walk around her CEO. She toyed with the frayed edges of Carmilla’s denim vest before grabbing her hips from behind and rotating her toward the mirror. Laura leaned over Carmilla’s right shoulder, hands still firmly on her hips and whispered in her ear while locking eyes with Carmilla’s reflection, “now we’re even for the shark suit.”

Carmilla scoffed and playfully pushed Laura away.

“Okay, I held up my end of the bargain. Now can we please go get food? I didn’t think you’d be able to shop for hours on end with no breaks…” Carmilla whined.

Laura tutted her tongue and called Camilla weak before shooing her back behind the curtain to change.

“Can I at least shower first? I got embarrassingly sweaty on that run.” Laura called out, checking her phone for the time.

Carmilla peaked her head out from behind the curtain, using her arms to hold the fabric against her chest, and tilting her head before responding, “but I’m hungry, and it’ll take you forever to get to the east side and all the way back here…can you just shower at my place so we can eat sooner?”

Laura gulped as her eyes took in Carmilla’s toned arm holding the curtain over her clearly topless form.

“Uh…sure,” she responded with a weak voice.

_Smooth, Hollis._

“I mean yeah, that makes sense. Except I don’t have a change of clothes.”

“I’ll loan you something,” Carmilla said casually, stepping back behind the curtain.

_Yeah because that won’t be weird at all, boss._

_______________________

The closer the pair got to Carmilla’s apartment, the more nervous she became. The last time she’d had Laura over, things did not end well, and here she was inviting her to get naked in her home for a second time—though under much more innocent circumstances.

Carmilla fumbled with the lock for a few seconds before she heard the click of the key and exhaled nervously, turning the knob and swinging the door open for Laura to enter.

“So the bathroom is over here…” Carmilla said, walking past Laura and gesturing into the master bedroom. “Let me grab you a towel,” she added as she pulled open a linen closet in the hallway.

Laura took the towel and chuckled nervously. “Okay, so I’ll just be a minute then,” she said, heading into the bedroom.

As soon as the bathroom door was closed, Carmilla exhaled and palmed her face.

_What was I thinking?_

Deciding that a quick drink might help settle her nerves, she headed into the kitchen to pour a small glass of wine. The sound of the shower turning on sent an image of Laura’s naked body straight to the forefront of Carmilla’s mind. She closed her eyes tight and shook her head, internally chastising herself for letting her mind drift to an inappropriate place.

_Friends. That’s all you can be._

_____________________

“Shit….” Laura hissed as she turned the shower off and grabbed her towel from off the rack.

_You didn’t get clothes, you spaz._

Laura took her time towel drying before combing through her hair with her fingers. She had to at least try to look presentable if she was going to have to trudge through Carmilla’s apartment to ask her for clothes. 

Using Carmilla’s shampoo, conditioner, and soap had been an odd sensory experience—the domesticity of it all surprised Laura. She didn’t expect to feel so at ease making herself comfortable in Carmilla’s space.

Laura wrapped the towel around her chest, making sure to secure it tightly before venturing out to find Carmilla. She shivered at the change of temperature once she opened the bathroom door.

“Carm…” she called out tentatively as she padded through the bedroom and out into the main living area.

Laura heard shuffling from the kitchen. She turned her head toward the noise just in time to see Carmilla round the corner.

“Yeah, Laur—fuck…”

______________________

Carmilla spun away from Laura and fixed her eyes on the ceiling.

“Jesus, Laura. Where are your clothes?!” Carmilla said, trying to maintain an even tone. Her heart was beating rapidly, and she was embarrassed to admit just how worked up she’d gotten from such a quick glimpse of a towel-clad Laura.

“Ummm…you never gave me any?” Laura answered in a small voice.

_Great, I embarrassed her by reacting like a psycho._

Carmilla turned slowly and kept her eyes trained on Laura’s, fighting the urge to take in more of Laura’s exposed skin.

“Oh. Right,” Carmilla answered. “Sorry…let’s find you something to wear.”

Carmilla speed walked to her closet, Laura following behind tentatively. Carmilla grabbed a basic t-shirt and a pair of leggings from her dresser and thrust them in Laura’s direction without turning to face her.

Laura took the clothes from Carmilla’s outstretched hand and then chuckled as she surveyed them. Carmilla turned at the noise and raised an eyebrow in response.

“So you want me to go commando and be braless? What kind of game are you playing at here, Karnstein?”

A furious blush rose onto Carmilla’s cheeks.

“Oh. Um…one sec,” Carmilla said, clearly flustered. She turned back to her dresser and pulled out a black thong. “Uh here…,” she said, thrusting the underwear toward Laura without making eye contact.

“So I finally get in your panties, huh?” Laura said, laughing at her own joke.

Carmilla’s eyes snapped up to Laura’s. All of their encounters for the week came flooding to Carmilla’s mind—the conversations, the laughter, the charged glances. She took a tentative step toward Laura, finally letting herself soak up the view of the girl wearing only a towel.

The tension in the room shifted. Carmilla watched as Laura swallowed and licked her lips, her grip on her towel loosening.

“Laura…” she said in a gravelly voice. “If you want me to stop, just say so.”

“Oh for fuck’s sake…” Laura responded, surging forward to kiss Carmilla, dropping her towel in the process.

Carmilla moaned at the feel of Laura’s bare skin pressed against her. She pulled her closer, both hands gripped firmly on Laura’s ass, before sliding her hands to the backs of her thighs and lifting her up. Laura wrapped her legs around Carmilla’s waist as her lips broke free from the kiss and moved to Carmilla’s neck.

Carmilla stumbled back toward the bed, stepping awkwardly as she tried to maintain her balance with Laura wrapped around her. Once she felt the mattress against her knees, she dropped Laura onto the bed and marveled at her naked form.

“Clothes off,” Laura demanded, pointing to a still fully clothed Carmilla.

Carmilla hastily pulled her shirt over her head, tossing it aside, before moving to unbutton her jeans. She made quick work of kicking them off and was soon straddling Laura on the bed.

“You’re so fucking sexy,” Carmilla whispered to Laura before pulling an earlobe between her teeth. Carmilla’s hand brushed the length of Laura’s torso before working between her spread legs. “God…you’re so wet,” she moaned into Laura’s ear.

Laura grabbed the back of Carmilla’s neck roughly and pulled her so they were face to face.

“Don’t do this if you’re just going to run away,” Laura said, her eyes locked on Carmilla’s.

“I can’t stay away from you,” Carmilla replied as she slipped two fingers into Laura, muffling Laura’s moan with a kiss. Carmilla reveled the feel of Laura around her fingers, but she needed more, so she slid down Laura’s body—trailing kisses along the way—until she was situated between the girl’s legs.

Laura gasped when Carmilla’s tongue brushed against her clit, her hands immediately grabbing the back of Carmilla’s head to keep her there.

“Oh god, Carm. Don’t stop,” she plead as her hips bucked up.

Carmilla moaned as she felt the pressure of Laura’s hands holding her in place. She doubled her efforts, pressing deeper into Laura with her hand and sucking on her clit with her mouth until she felt Laura’s thighs tremble and her walls clench. Not wanting to miss her chance to watch Laura come undone, Carmilla replaced her tongue with her thumb and kissed her way up Laura’s body until their foreheads were pressed together.

Carmilla smiled as she watched Laura’s eyes flutter shut and felt her strong arm pull their bodies flush. “Come for me,” she said before connecting their mouths.

Laura’s body trembled and shook as her orgasm hit, her mouth breaking free from Carmilla’s as she cried out. Carmilla slowly withdrew her hand and kissed Laura’s temple before collapsing next to her in bed.

“Wow.”

_________________________

Laura giggled as she rolled over, placing her hand on Carmilla’s hip.

“Now I’m really mad we got interrupted the first time. I can’t believe I had to wait so long for that,” she teased before brushing a piece of hair behind Carmilla’s ear. Laura let her thumb trace soft circles along Carmilla’s jaw and leaned in for a soft kiss. “There are other things I’ve been waiting a long time to do too,” she whispered, pulling away from the kiss.

“Oh I think I’d like very much to hear more about that,” Carmilla smiled, pulling Laura’s body on top of her own.

“Well…” Laura said, slipping a thigh between Carmilla’s spread legs. She rolled her hips forward, smiling as Carmilla gripped her hips, guiding her pace. “I’ve been wanting to touch you,” Laura whispered, pressing her hand between their bodies, letting her fingers trace light patterns around Carmilla’s clit. She moved her hand lower and teased at Carmilla’s entrance, relishing how wet the girl was for her.

“And?” Carmilla said in a breathy voice.

“And…” Laura responded, pressing two fingers into Carmilla only to pull them out and up to her mouth. “I’ve been wanting to taste you,” she said before taking both fingers into her mouth, never breaking eye contact.

“Fuck…” Carmilla groaned. “Laura, please. I need you.”

Laura surged forward to kiss Carmilla and returned her hand to its former position and straight into Carmilla. Carmilla’s head snapped back to the pillow, her eyes shutting as she gasped.

“Yes, just like that,” she whispered, pushing her hips harder into Laura to deepen the angle.

Laura rose to her knees to get a better vantage point of the writhing girl beneath her, delighting in the fact that she was the one making Carmilla’s body respond in this way. She leaned down, taking a nipple into her mouth, sucking hard to earn a louder moan from Carmilla. Laura relented, lightly licking the now stiff bud before grazing it with her teeth, smiling as Carmilla’s back arched off the mattress.

Laura took the opportunity to turn the angle of her hand in Carmilla and brush her thumb against Carmilla’s clit.

“Shit! Yes, don’t stop,” Carmilla begged grabbing Laura’s ass and pulling her body flush to her own. “Can you come again?” she asked, encouraging Laura to grind on her thigh by pulling on her hips.

Laura began moving on her own, nodding emphatically as she pressed deeper into Carmilla. The two panted in unison as their movements became more fluid.

“I’m close,” Carmilla said, her grip tightening on Laura’s hips.

Her words spurred Laura to quicken her pace. Carmilla moved her hand between her thigh and Laura to provide more concentrated friction. Laura throbbed with the new contact and knew she wasn’t far away from a second orgasm.

“Come with me,” Carmilla said with a mischievous grin, pressing harder against Laura.

Both girls came at once, Laura tossing her head back in a silent scream while Carmilla strung together a string of incomprehensible words.

Laura slowly removed her fingers from Carmilla and collapsed on top of her, smiling as she felt two arms wrap around her and trace light patterns. Laura felt the rumble of a laugh and pushed herself up to make eye contact with Carmilla.

“What?” she asked playfully.

“Nothing…I’ve just never actually had simultaneous orgasm. I was pretty sure it wasn’t a real thing,” she said, continuing to laugh.

“Well you’re welcome for being able to come on command. I think it’s only right you give me credit,” Laura responded, laying her head back down on Carmilla’s bare chest.

“Yeah yeah, you can take all the credit, cutie.”

“Hey Carm?” Laura said, her tone suddenly more subdued. “Do we need to talk about what this means?”

Laura felt Carmilla nod. “We do, but let’s just enjoy this moment, alright?”

“Yeah. Sure. Sounds good,” Laura said, trying to fight the feeling that they were just going to end up right back where they were before.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Smutty smut.
> 
> If you guys can't tell, I hate pretty much all the words used in these stories in place of "vagina" so I just generally avoid them. Now that I'm writing this, I realize how weird of a thing that is to say, so I'll just stop.
> 
> I hope you guys liked it. Let me know your thoughts if you want :)
> 
> P.S. we had ANOTHER international flight debacle (to the tune of $1600 CAD in denied boarding compensation, alternate destination airport, rental car, and 2 1/2 hour drive home). If anyone ever is on the same flight as me, my apologies. I'm cursed.


	20. Good Morning, Cutie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this is a short chapter and it's really late...but...smut?

Carmilla stirred in her sleep, rolling over in a twist of sheets and limbs until she felt something hard against her side. Her eyes opened groggily, confused by the unexpected presence of something in her bed. She smiled as her vision adjusted and she saw Laura stretched out, one hand above her head and her light brown hair splayed across the pillow.

Images of the night before flooded Carmilla’s memory as she took in the still naked form of the girl in her bed. She looked beautiful in her sleep—even more so than she was accustomed to seeing during waking hours. Her skin glowed and her features were soft and carefree. Her chest rose and fell in a soothing pattern that had Carmilla mesmerized.

Unable to keep herself from reaching out to touch the perfect body before her, she lightly traced patterns over the collarbones peeking above the sheets, letting her finger trail lower, bringing the sheet with it. The light attention of her finger combined with the exposure to the cool air caused Laura’s nipples to harden and elicited a groan from the girl.

Carmilla closed her eyes at the noise, a fresh wave of arousal hitting her as Laura turned into her touch and grabbed her hand, pushing it lower.

“Good morning, cutie. Feeling a little frisky are we?” Carmilla teased.

“You’re the one feeling up a sleeping girl,” Laura said, her voice groggy with sleep, as she brought Carmilla’s hand between her legs, “and I’m certainly not going to let you be a tease.”

Carmilla bit her lip as she felt how wet Laura already was—she couldn’t get over how sexy it was that Laura always seemed to be ready for her. 

“Roll over,” Carmilla commanded, now awake and alert.

Laura obliged and Carmilla quickly pressed her weight on top of her back, slipping one leg between Laura’s. She pressed kisses to the girl’s back as she rolled her hips a few times, letting her hands roam down smooth skin before grabbing Laura by the waist and pulling her up to a kneeling position—her arms pressed into the mattress and back arched just how she wanted her. From her position behind Laura, she slipped two fingers in, pressing forward and down until she felt Laura shudder and heard her gasp.

“Oh fuck,” Laura said breathlessly as she pressed her hips back, anxious to meet Carmilla’s thrusts, “right there.”

Spurred by Laura’s words, Carmilla increased her pace. She moved her left hand from its place on Laura’s hip around her thigh and traced firm circles against the girl’s clit. Laura’s breathing became more and more labored, accompanied by small moans whenever Carmilla curled her fingers down.

Carmilla couldn’t keep from grinding her hips against Laura, attempting to sate her own growing desire as each noise elicited from her partner sent a pang through her body. Laura’s arms gave out, her head hitting the pillow—“don’t stop” tumbling out of her mouth on repeat as she rocked back and forth with Carmilla’s thrusts.  
Carmilla felt herself nearing the edge, sure that she was minutes away from orgasm when Laura cried out, collapsing onto the bed as her body shook in pleasure.

Carmilla immediately missed the contact. She moved to straddle the girl whose front was still pressed into the mattress, head turned to the side as she tried to catch her breath. Laura rolled over, a smile plastered on her face as she reached up and gently traced her thumb against Carmilla’s cheek.

“Good morning, Carm,” she said, craning her neck up to press a light kiss to the girl’s nose. 

Carmilla hummed in response, her hips rocking gently as she let her eyes drift over Laura’s still heaving chest and perfectly flushed skin.

_Beautiful._

She pressed a kiss just underneath Laura’s ear before whispering, “great morning, cupcake.”

__________________________

Carmilla’s hot breath against her ear sent a shiver through Laura’s body. Her skin felt warm and faint tingling sensations were shooting through her extremities. Carmilla’s arousal was evident as she continued to roll her hips against Laura, who was still working to recover full functionality of all her body parts.

Sensing that Carmilla’s need was more urgent than her recovery time was likely to allow, she thought quickly and grabbed Carmilla roughly by the back of her thighs.

“Come here,” she said, coaxing the girl to crawl up her body. Laura watched the gears turn and smirked as Carmilla quickly crawled the remaining distance and situated herself above her mouth, waiting for further instruction.

Laura didn’t make her wait long. She pressed open palms against Carmilla’s ass, pulling her down against her waiting tongue.

“Oh…god,” Carmilla whined, her arms finding the top of the headboard to support herself as Laura’s continued strokes caused her legs to spasm.

Laura kept her grip on Carmilla’s ass, encouraging her to rock her hips at her own pace as her tongue delved deeper. She watched as Carmilla tilted her head back and released a loud moan that reignited Laura’s arousal. She ran her tongue the length of Carmilla before capturing her clit in her mouth and sucking hard, reveling in the breathless pants and expletives that tumbled out of Carmilla’s mouth.

_Oh my god, this is so hot._

She couldn’t stop her hand from reaching between her own legs as Carmilla writhed above her. She moaned against Carmilla as her fingers circled her still sensitive clit. 

Noticing one hand missing from her hip, Carmilla turned to see Laura’s fingers pressed where her own had been only minutes before. She groaned and rocked her hips harder at the realization of what Laura was doing.

Laura’s moans sent vibrations through Carmilla’s whole body that had her shaking, seconds from release. Carmilla slumped against the headboard and her eyes fluttered shut as her orgasm hit her. Laura bucked her hips up as she felt Carmilla’s muscles clench, continuing to touch herself until she was shuddering underneath Carmilla for the second time. 

“Jesus Christ,” Carmilla said as she moved to lie next to Laura, “that was incredible.”

Laura smiled in response, shrugging modestly.

“No seriously, Laura. Incredible.”

“I guess it was pretty good,” Laura said with a toothy grin.

“How am I ever supposed to get work done knowing that you’re capable of that?” Carmilla said, rolling over to face Laura.

“Well your office does have a door…” Laura joked. She watched as Carmilla’s eyes widened. Fearing that she’d overstepped, she quickly added, “I’m joking, Carm. We’ll be discreet. If that’s what you want. I mean, I’m not assuming that this means you’re my girlfriend or whatever or that this will happen again. Oh god…I’m being an idiot aren’t I?”

“Hey hey hey,” Carmilla responded, gripping Laura’s neck, “I want this to be a thing, okay? I don’t know exactly how it’ll go, and yes, we’ll definitely have to be discreet until your internship is done, but I definitely want this.”

“Yeah?” Laura asked shyly.

“Absolutely.”


	21. Too Sweet?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll just stop apologizing for delays...I was straight up binge watching Orphan Black again and then obsessing over the Olympics.
> 
> Hope you guys like the chapter!

Laura bit her lip as her hand tentatively reached toward the shelf—peanut butter or almond butter. Frozen by indecision, she stood, hand outstretched. Luckily, she’d been arriving to work earlier and earlier, so no one was around to witness her toast topping dilemma. Just as she reached toward the almond butter, her eyes caught sight of the true pantry prize, and she quickly snatched up the jar.

_Nutella. Of course._

Smiling to herself as she twisted the jar open, Laura skipped out of the pantry and over to the toaster. As she waited for the toast, she sneakily scooped some spread off the lid with her index finger and eagerly brought it to her mouth. So immersed was she in getting every last bit into her mouth, she didn’t feel the presence of another in the room until she felt two strong arms wrap around her.

“Dessert for breakfast, huh?” she heard the familiar voice whisper into her ear, eliciting a shiver as she leaned back into the embrace. Even though it had only been a few days since their weekend together, her body was already attuned to the feel of Carmilla’s, automatically closing the distance, all curves forming together.

“Um, it’s hazelnut. Totally counts as a legitimate breakfast topping,” she responded playfully scooping another finger of the spread and offering it to Carmilla as she turned to face her—her breath catching as their eyes locked. The atmosphere felt electric with the close proximity, Laura’s hair standing on end as her hazelnut-covered finger hovered inches between both of their mouths.

Carmilla shook her head, leaning past Laura’s hand and placed a chaste kiss to her cheek before hopping onto the counter next to the toaster.

“That’s a little too sweet for breakfast. Sorry, creampuff,” she said shrugging her shoulders. 

Laura exhaled at the loss of closeness and tilted her head as she studied the beautiful girl sitting before her. She smirked as she stepped closer, settling herself between Carmilla’s legs, letting her unoccupied hand rest firmly on Carmilla’s thigh.

“Oh? Too sweet?” she said in a mock innocent tone before slowly licking the spread off her finger without breaking eye contact.

Carmilla’s eyes widened at the act and she couldn’t help but lean forward, her eyes darting down to Laura’s lips as she closed them around her finger and sucked it clean. Carmilla’s hands found Laura’s hips, and she let out a mangled breath in response to a quiet moan from Laura.

The spring of the toaster made both girls jump, breaking the tension in the room. Carmilla chuckled as she slid off the counter, shaking her head as she thought of how close she’d been to giving in to her desires.

“You better eat. You’ll need your energy for later,” she said with a wink, before grabbing a granola bar and heading toward her office.

Laura watched her boss exit, unable to keep from biting her lip as her eyes trailed her fleeing form. Once Carmilla was safely out of view, Laura closed her eyes and shook her head slightly, then turned to finish preparing her toast. They’d agreed to no office shenanigans, but Laura was finding it hard to remember why as she mustered all her willpower to stay put and not follow Carmilla into her office.

_This is going to be a long day._

_______________________

A knock at the door brought Carmilla’s attention away from her morning emails. She raised her eyebrows in amusement.

_Well that didn’t take her long._

With a smile on her face, she strode to the door and flung it open, her smile quickly replaced with a surprised look.

“Will. I didn’t expect you.”

“Yeah, I gathered that when you opened the door grinning like a fool…who were you expecting?” he asked with a knowing smirk.

“Come on. Get inside,” Carmilla responded, pulling the door shut behind Will. “You never responded to my email. I figured I wouldn’t be seeing you for awhile,” Carmilla continued, as she watched her brother sink onto the couch.

“Well, you were a dick, so I couldn’t just let you off that easy. I had to make you sweat it out a bit. By the way, you’re forgiven for being an ass hat,” he responded, grinning up at her. “I take it your sunny disposition means you finally stopped acting like an idiot and let yourself go for that hot intern of yours?”

“Laura. Her name is Laura,” she replied, unable to keep from smiling, “and yeah, it’s been a good week.”

“Well…can’t say I’m surprised. You seemed pretty hung up on her. So things are good? Not fearing the motherly wrath anymore?” Will probed.

“We’re being careful,” Carmilla said offhandedly. “I’ll tell mother eventually, but I don’t want her ruining this before I even know what it is.”

“Oh I think it’s pretty clear what this is. I see a U-Haul in your near future,” Will joked, earning a punch to the arm. “Hey! I’m just saying…I haven’t seen you act like this in a very long time. Not since we were teenagers and you fell in love with a different girl every week.”

Carmilla glared in response.

“It’s a good thing, Carmilla. I’m glad to see you happy,” Will said in a soft tone. “Do I get to meet her for real sometime soon?”

Carmilla scoffed, “Don’t push it, little brother.”

_____________________

Laura stared at the clock on her screen. Only a few more minutes stood between her and the weekend. She didn’t have explicit plans, but if it was up to her, she’d be spending most of the weekend wrapped up in Carmilla’s ludicrously expensive sheets exploring every inch of her body. Since their kitchen flirting session, Laura had been able to think of little else—to the detriment of her productivity.

Luckily, the app development was moving along right on pace, so the team had a relaxed Friday, and Laura’s wandering mind wasn’t noticed.

“Drinks?” Betty asked, snapping Laura from her thoughts.

“Oh. Um…sure, yeah,” she responded, not wanting to appear suspicious by not going out two weekends in a row. She looked toward Carmilla’s office and saw light glowing from underneath the shut door. “Meet you guys there?”

“Yeah sounds good. We’ll be at the usual spot. Kirsch already snuck out and got us a table,” Betty added in a stage whisper.

Laura chuckled in response. “Of course he did. I’ll be there in 15 minutes. I just have a few things to finish up.”

“Okay, don’t work too hard, Hollis!”

_____________________

Carmilla was reviewing quarterly financials when she heard a knock at her door. She glanced, checking the time.

_Not making the same mistake twice in one day…_

“Come in,” she called in her most professional tone.

When she saw Laura duck in and close the door quietly behind her, she smiled broadly.

“Hey, I was just thinking about you. Want to get out of here?” she said suggestively.

Laura grimaced before plopping into the seat in front of Carmilla’s desk. She ran her hands through her hair and looked to the side before exhaling.

“About that…so I’m kind of an idiot and just agreed to go drinking with the other interns. I just didn’t want to be suspicious by being MIA for two weekends in a row. Maybe you can come with us?” Laura added hopefully.

“Somehow I don’t think your friends want to get drinks with their boss…” Carmilla responded, not putting much effort into disguising her disappointment.

Laura stood from her seat and walked around the desk, placing her her hands on Carmilla’s shoulders from behind. “Maybe I can just come over after?” she whispered, sliding her hands around to envelop the girl in a hug. Carmilla leaned back into the pressure and tilted her head back to make eye contact.

“I think I can make that work,” she said. “Go. Have fun with your friends. I’ll be waiting for you,” she continued, squeezing Laura’s arms. “And don’t get so drunk that you can’t enjoy what I have planned for you.”

“Mmmm. You’re not making it easy for me to leave, you know?” Laura chided playfully before placing a kiss on Carmilla’s cheek and heading to pack up her things. “See you tonight,” she said as she got to the door.

“See you, cupcake.”

____________________

“Carm?” Laura pulled the phone away from her ear to check that she’d dialed correctly. “Carm? Are you there?”

She mentally scolded herself as she tried to focus on the blindingly bright screen, unable to make out the contact name.

_I never should have let Kirsch buy my drinks…_

Laura had managed to get an Uber to drop her at Carmilla’s apartment by referring to it as “the shiny one on Lamar with vines on the balconies,” but now she had to actually get into the building, which was proving difficult in her drunken state.

Remembering that there was a nice doorman, she decided to venture to the front desk and see if he could call Carmilla for her.

“Hello!” she called brightly as she approached the desk in what she hoped was a straight path. “I was wondering if you could call Carm and have her buzz me up? I’m having some trouble with my phone.”

The doorman looked at her skeptically. “I’m sorry, who do you want me to call?”

“Carm…illa. Carmilla. Karnstein? She lives way high up,” Laura added, trying to impress upon the man the fact that she’d been here before.

“One moment,” he responded, shaking his head as he picked up a phone and pressed a few buttons. “Miss Karnstein? Yes, I have a Ms—“ the doorman looked at Laura, questioningly.

“Hollis,” Laura whispered, as though she needed to keep her identity private from the empty lobby.

“A Ms. Hollis is here to see you.” There was a brief pause before the doorman nodded and spoke into the receiver again, “very well. I’ll send her right up.”

___________________

Carmilla stood by the door, waiting for Laura’s arrival. As soon as she heard the knock, she opened the door and pulled Laura in, closing the door in the process.

“I thought about you all night,” she husked as she closed the distance and pressed Laura against the closed door. She watched as Laura unsteadily braced herself against the door, her eyes half lidded.

“Oh shit. You’re wasted,” Carmilla whined.

“No. No, Carm I only had a few,” Laura said, reaching out to pull her in for a kiss.

Carmilla allowed herself to be pulled in, but when she felt Laura swaying and holding onto her for support during their kiss, she grabbed the girl by the elbows and led her to the couch.

“Sit,” she said before heading into the kitchen to fill a glass with water. “Here, drink this,” she said upon her return, stroking Laura’s hair as she coaxed the glass toward her lips.

Laura gulped the drink down quickly and then leaned back against the cushions.

“Are you okay?” Carmilla asked, adjusting the pillow underneath Laura’s head. “Do you want to get out of those clothes and into something for sleeping?”

Laura nodded her head and reached for the hem of her shirt.

“Here. Let me,” Carmilla insisted as she helped Laura into a sitting position. She pulled her shirt over her head and helped Laura unbutton her pants. “Okay, I’m just going to grab some shorts and a shirt for you. I’ll be back in two seconds,” Carmilla said.

When she came back from her room with the clothes in hand, Laura was lying on the floor with her pants around her thighs.

Carmilla stifled her laugh and helped Laura pull her pants off the rest of the way before helping her into the sleep shirt and shorts.

“Okay, up we go,” Carmilla said, pulling Laura up and guiding her into the bedroom. “Bed time for you.”

After successfully getting Laura in bed, Carmilla quickly changed and climbed in next to her.

“Carm?” Laura asked in a small voice.

“Yeah, cupcake?” she answered.

“Why do you want to leave the small potatoes?”

“Cupcake, you’re not making any sense. You’re drunk.”

“No…the company. Small potatoes. Why do you want to leave?”

Carmilla turned and gently brushed Laura’s hair away from her face. This wasn’t a question that anyone ever asked her. Ambition is not something that people question—taking over for her mother was the assumed path. The default.

“It’s what I’ve been working for forever. Being CEO is all I’ve ever wanted.”

“I don’t know…you never light up when you talk about it,” Laura said, yawning loudly before curling into a small ball. “I think you could do anything if you wanted to,” she added.

Carmilla hummed in response, rubbing Laura’s back until she drifted off into sleep. Did she really want to run a company? Was she just following the path that was laid out for her?

_What would I do if I could do anything…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys. The Olympics. It's the most wonderful time.
> 
> PS, I made my first ever post on tumblr. Yay internet skills. They are the sneak peeks of our engagement photos. Feel free to go check out the adorableness[ here](https://www.tumblr.com/blog/detrimentalsentimental).


	22. I'll Probably Pay For That...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another late chapter...guys, I know. I'm the worst. Sorry! Thanks for hanging in there :)

In the early morning hours, light streamed through Carmilla’s bedroom window, casting the room in a soft glow. She looked over to a still curled up Laura and envied the restful sleep that she’d missed out on. After Laura had drifted to sleep, Carmilla tossed and turned, unable to quiet her mind—a problem that persisted even after she woke from her fitful sleep.

_What am I doing with my life? Am I happy? Do I want to be CEO?_

She’d never given serious thought to her next move. She didn’t have to. Every decision that she made was for a singular purpose. It felt inevitable—fulfilling even—until now. In such a short time, Laura had blown into her life and made her question what she’d always thought, always wanted.

In retrospect, everything she strived for had been to receive the accolades, to be the best. It had nothing to do with the actual goal of becoming CEO—that was just the next big achievement along a path of successes. The ultimate motivation to outdo herself and her peers. But what would she feel once she assumed power?

_Will I just be on a never ending quest for the “next” thing?_

A muffled grunt brought her back to reality.

“Ugh….” Laura rolled onto her back and draped her right hand over her face to block the sunlight. “I’m never drinking again,” she promised herself.

Carmilla turned toward her and stroked her hair, leaning close to place a light kiss on her forehead.

“You’re probably going to say that at least 100 more times before you turn 25,” Carmilla responded with a laugh, her face still close to Laura’s.

“Whoa whoa…don’t laugh so close to my ears. I think they’re ringing,” Laura groaned, rolling over away from Carmilla and pulling the comforter over her head.

Carmilla shook her head as she looked at the hopeless lump underneath the covers, unable to stifle the smile that seemed to be more and more common when she spent time around Laura. Even a grumpy, hungover version of the girl was endearing to her. She gave the lump a shove. “Do you want me to take you to get greasy food or what?”

Laura peeked out from underneath the covers, rolling her eyes as she responded. “Well I guess if you aren’t going to deliver it to bed, I can maybe find the strength to get dressed. One condition though…”

“What is it?”

“Wherever we go has to serve pancakes.”

Carmilla chuckled as she pulled the comforter away and offered her hand to the curled up girl.

“I think we can manage that.”

__________________________

Laura closed her eyes as she breathed in deeply, the cinnamon aroma causing her mouth to water. She made quick work of taking a huge first bite—not even bothering to wait until Carmilla had unwrapped her silverware. She moaned around the fork as her tastebuds were overwhelmed with cinnamon, vanilla, and butter. 

“Okay I think you’re just trying to woo me by keeping me well fed…seriously. Cinnamon roll pancakes? I don’t know why these exist, but I’m so happy right now. So happy,” Laura said as she shoveled another forkful into her mouth.

Carmilla laughed as she prepared a bite of her eggs benedict, making sure to assemble her fork so she got equal parts english muffin, ham, egg, and hollandaise. “You might want to slow down over there. You were about fifteen seconds from puking when you got out of bed this morning,” Carmilla said after swallowing her carefully crafted bite.

“Oh hush. Nothing will keep me from demolishing these pancakes,” Laura retorted, stabbing another bite.

“You must have had the same attitude last night but with shots instead,” Carmilla joked, earning her a glare.

“Too soon,” Laura said, shaking her head. “I swear Kirsch was on a mission.”

“He better watch it on Monday. He ruined some pretty serious plans I had for you…” Carmilla trailed off, humming as she closed her eyes and licked her lips.

“Oh come on. That’s so not fair. You know I wanted to be there with you last night,” Laura whined. “Can you at least tell me what you had planned,” she added in a hushed tone as her foot sought out Carmilla’s shin, rubbing lightly up to her kneecap.

Carmilla leaned her body forward, her elbows propped up on the table and chin resting on interlocked hands. She made a show of darting her eyes left and right to make sure no one was listening.

“Well…first I was going to take you into the bedroom, sit you down, and strip off all of my clothes…very….slowly,” Carmilla whispered the last words, unclasping her hands and drawing light patterns on Laura’s forearm.

Laura reached out, attempting to reciprocate the affection as Carmilla continued her story.

“Ah ah…no touching,” Carmilla said, swatting at Laura’s hand. “I would have made you keep your hands behind your back as I straddled you, now completely naked. You would have begged to touch me, unable to control your hips from shooting upward as I gently rocked.”

Laura swallowed hard, her face heating up as she hung on Carmilla’s every word. She nodded, urging Carmilla to continue.

“Oh you want me to continue?” Carmilla asked mockingly in response to Laura’s head bobbing fervently. “I don’t know…” she added, glancing around at the surrounding tables before leaning closer, her mouth inches from Laura’s ear. “The next parts probably aren’t appropriate for the public.”

Laura wiped her now clammy palms along her thighs as she tried to compose herself.

_Oh my god. I’m going to kill Kirsch…_

“We’ll continue this when we get back to your place, yes?” Laura pleaded.

Carmilla returned to an upright posture, fork in her left hand and knife in her right—the perfect picture of a wealthy upbringing. “I’m sorry, continue what?” Carmilla asked, feigning innocence as she brought a small bite to her mouth.

“Ugh. You’re the worst…” Laura grumbled before returning her attention to her pancakes.

____________________

Laura reached for Carmilla’s hand as they neared her building, pulling her closer. “You know, I was serious back there. I’m feeling much better now, and I really think you ought to show me what I missed out on last night.”

Carmilla pulled her hand away, spinning around to face Laura as she walked backwards toward the front door of her building. She made a show of looking Laura up and down, hands on her hips as she continued on her path.

“Maybe. I think you’ll have to show me that you really want it,” Carmilla said, opening the door for Laura once she approached it.

“Oh I want it. Race you!” Laura yelled as she sprinted past Carmilla and toward the elevator.

Carmilla chuckled as she followed, close on Laura’s heels.

“Ms. Karnstein!” her doorman, Oscar, called out. “Wait!”

“Sorry…sorry, no running I know!” Carmilla yelled in response, not paying much attention to the man’s desperate attempts to stop her.

_I’ll probably pay for that one…_

The elevator dinged just as Carmilla approached it, and both girls piled in, laughing. Carmilla pressed the button for her floor and sauntered over to Laura, placing her hands on Laura’s hips and pushing her back against the elevator wall.

“You know, I’m probably going to get a passive aggressive note from management for running through the lobby, so thanks for that,” Carmilla said as she let her hands roam up along Laura’s ribcage.

“Oh no. Well I better make it worth your while,” Laura husked, leaning forward to capture Carmilla’s ear in a teasing bite. The elevator dinged, causing both girls to jump. “Come on,” Laura said, pulling Carmilla out of the elevator. “You’re wearing way too much for what I want to do to you…” Laura said as the turned the hallway corner before abruptly stopping. She gasped.

Carmilla’s brained reeled.

_Shit shit shit._

“Mother,” she croaked.

“Carmilla, dear. Why don't you send Ms. Hollis home now? You and I have things to discuss.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What's that? Advancement of the plot? Next chapter should be fun.
> 
> I've got to start wrapping this baby up! I'm thinking five or so more chapters, but I'll definitely let you guys know before I just up and end things.
> 
> Let me know what you think!
> 
> ALSO, 16k hits?? You are all the best.


	23. Things to Discuss

Laura couldn’t breathe. Any air present in her lungs before she rounded the corner of the hallway had disappeared—as though her chest was a smoldering fire sucking all of the spare oxygen to keep its dying embers alight. She stood, frozen, unable to register the words being shared between the two women in front of her. Carmilla’s shoulders were tense and Laura watched as she shook her head and stepped forward, blocking off Laura’s view.

Laura took an audible breath, her body remembering how once her view of Carmilla’s mother was obscured. Her brain was cycling through one terrifying thought after another.

________________________

“You and I have things to discuss.”

Carmilla’s body tensed. Her mind raced as she tried to think through ways to minimize the damage.

_How does she know who Laura is?_

Her mother’s eyes bore through her, waiting for her to dismiss Laura. Carmilla was stuck. She didn’t want to abandon Laura again, but she also didn’t want her to witness the unavoidable wrath of her mother. Lillita wasn’t one to pull punches, and Carmilla knew that things would get heated if Laura stuck around.

Carmilla stepped forward, cutting off Laura’s view and spoke in a hushed tone to her mother.

“If you’ll please just go inside, I’ll talk to Laura and then be right in,” she said with all the courage she could muster.

Her mother tilted her head in response, her lips pursed. She was unamused with this turn of events, and she made that clear to Carmilla with her raised eyebrows and click of her tongue.

“Two minutes. Do not keep me waiting.”

Carmilla breathed a sigh of relief as her mother disappeared into the apartment. She turned slowly to Laura, her shoulders drooping with the weight of the conversation ahead of her. When she saw the look on Laura’s face, Carmilla immediately stepped closer, reaching for her hand. Laura flinched from the contact, blinking into consciousness. Carmilla watched as her eyes widened and her head shook.

“Carm, I’m so sorry. I pushed you into this, and now everything is ruined,” Laura said, her voice cracking on the last word. “I’ll go,” she added, quickly turning and pulling her hand from Carmilla’s.

Carmilla watched in shock as Laura fled down the hallway, unable to bring herself to call out or go after her. She’d meant to reassure Laura that she wouldn’t let her down again. That she was serious about what they’d discussed—serious about wanting to be with her, but as she watched Laura run from her, all of her confidence drained.

Realizing she’d missed her chance, Carmilla steeled her nerves as she turned to her front door. She reached for the knob, taking in a deep breath before pushing it open.

_Okay. Here goes nothing._

______________________

Laura burst through the apartment lobby and onto the street. Her mind continued to race as she leaned against the side of the building for support. Her body was now trying to compensate for the lack of oxygen—her chest heaving with the effort. She doubled over, keeping one hand on the brick wall as the other came to her temple.

_Do not cry. Just get home first._

She looked around for her bike as she tried to catch her breath. She scanned the nearest bike rack where she usually kept her bike when she visited Carmilla, laughing and tilting her head back in frustration when she realized she’d taken an uber the night before.

_Great. Of course…_

Not wanting to deal with a random driver, she began walking the three miles home. She looked back at Carmilla’s building as she walked further, wondering if her budding relationship was already being dismissed by Carmilla to save face.

_I wonder if she’ll at least let me stay until the app launches. Why couldn't I just wait one more month? This is all my fault. ___

_________________________

Her mother gestured to the couch when she opened the door, a small smirk playing on her lips as she watched Carmilla distress. Her mother splayed her fingers across her jaw and cheek, chuckling quietly as Carmilla took her seat.

“Well I must say, this wasn’t quite unexpected…you’ve always been one for destructive personal choices. But an intern, Carmilla? Honestly.”

“She’s more than that, Mother,” Carmilla defended as she squirmed in her seat. Her mother’s amusement evaporated, her face hardening as she watched her daughter.

“You’re right. She’s a liability. Frankly, this calls into question all of your decision making abilities. How can I trust you with the company when you do things like this? Did you think I wouldn’t find out?”

“How did you?”

Her mother scoffed in response.

“You’re a candidate for taking over a multi-billion dollar corporation, Carmilla. Did you think I wouldn’t vet you thoroughly?” 

Carmilla flinched and averted her eyes. _Of course._ She was stupid to think that her mother wouldn’t be keeping close tabs on her.

“I thought this fling would be fleeting like all of your other conquests, so I let it slide. Her showing up drunkenly in your home though, darling? I couldn’t ignore it any longer. If you want this job, you need to start acting like it.”

“I don’t know if I want it,” Carmilla whispered.

“How many times do I have to tell you not to mumble,” her mother scolded. “Speak up.”

“I don’t know if I want to be CEO,” Carmilla answered clearly, making eye contact for the first time since she sat.

______________________

Laura looked out over the lake as she neared downtown. She watched as happy families walked together, hand in hand. Her heart ached. She rarely felt homesick, but watching people going about their normal days with smiles on their faces made her feel so alone.

She reached into her bag, pulling out her phone and swiped through her contacts before landing on the one name she needed. She held the phone to her ear as she waited for the familiar voice.

“Hey, Kiddo! Haven’t heard from you in a while…everything okay?”

Laura smiled—her body instantly relaxed. “Yeah, Dad. Everything’s fine. I just wanted to hear your voice.”

“Uh oh. That doesn’t sound like my daughter,” her dad joked. “Seriously, honey. What’s up? You know you can always talk to me.”

Laura chuckled. _Of course he would know something was up._

“Well…there’s this girl,” Laura began. “And I mean it’s really complicated, but I finally felt like we were getting somewhere. She’s just so guarded, and her walls were starting to come down, and I was getting to see this beautiful person that she doesn’t show just anyone. I’m afraid I ruined everything though, and now I’ll never know if she felt the same. I'll never know if it was real,” Laura blurted in one breath.

She exhaled into the receiver, shaking her head in the process.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to dump all of that on you. I just haven’t been able to really talk to anyone about it.”

Her father whistled, and she could hear him smiling.

_What could he possibly be smiling about? Did he not just hear me?_

“Okay, I can hear you smiling, Dad. What the hell?”

“Sorry, honey. It’s not every day you hear your daughter talking about a person this important though. And I know you’re hurting right now, but that’s love for you—“

“Whoa! No one said anything about love…” Laura interjected.

Her dad laughed her off. 

“Honey, it’s not a bad thing. That’s why I’m smiling. I’m happy you found someone that makes you feel this much. If they can’t make you angrier than anyone else, they probably can’t make you happier than anyone else either.”

Laura balled her fist and sighed.

“Okay, maybe. Maybe I might be falling in love. But it doesn’t matter. It’s over now anyway!” Laura exhaled, defeated.

“Look, Laura. I might not know this girl, and I certainly don’t have all the details. But I know you. And I know that you’re strong willed and beautiful and caring and if you think this girl is worth it, then don’t give up on her.”

Laura held back her tears. Of course her dad would assume things would be fine. Of course he would think that she hadn’t done anything wrong. But it was too late. She did mess everything up. She sighed, and relented, deciding that it’d be better to let her dad think his ‘profound’ speech had the intended effect.

“Thanks, Dad. That’s just what I needed to hear,” she said before trading goodbyes and hanging up.

_Ugh…love, Laura? Really?_

_______________________

“What do you mean you don’t know? Carmilla, you’ve been working toward this for years…becoming CEO is all you’ve ever wanted!” her mother shouted.

Carmilla averted her eyes and swept a stray piece of hair behind her ear. “I don’t know if that’s true anymore. I just wanted what I thought I should want. Mother, I honestly can’t remember the last time I—“

“The last time you what, Carmilla?” her mother cut her off. “The last time you had fun? Woke up excited to go to work? That’s not reality, darling. Those are lies unsuccessful people tell themselves to make them feel better about not reaching their potential. Happiness is not a requirement for a career. You’re smarter than this, Carmilla.”

“Mother…”

“No. I’m serious. I mean, honestly, what do you expect to do if not take over the company? You’re not a regular person, Carmilla. You’re extraordinary. You won’t be satisfied doing something mundane.”

Despite the indirect compliment, Carmilla found herself getting more and more defensive. She hadn’t thought through what she would do if not take over, and her mother pointing that out only made her realize that she had no clue what she wanted.

“I don’t know, Mother. Maybe I’ll go back to school. I haven’t planned everything, but I know that I won’t be happy if I keep trudging along, and I don’t want to wake up one day and be bitter. I don’t want to resent you.”

Her mother scoffed. “I don’t care if you resent me if it keeps you from throwing away your opportunity to achieve greatness!”

Carmilla shook her head, frustrated that her words weren’t getting through to her mother.

“You never used to talk like this, Carmilla. I should have stepped in sooner. This silly, naive girl has you so caught up in this dream world you seem to have created. I didn’t think you’d be so susceptible to this kind of manipulation.”

Carmilla’s resolve hardened. None of this was Laura’s fault. If anything, she’d helped her realize what a life filled with happiness could look like. She couldn’t let her mother belittle that.

“It’s not manipulation. Laura has nothing to do with my choice. She doesn’t even know I’m considering not taking the job…hell, I’ve hardly had time to think about it myself. I know it seems rash to you, and I don’t expect you to understand straight away. I can at least assure you that I’m not making any decisions right this second, and I won’t make them lightly when I’m ready,” Carmilla said. Her mother stiffened and shook her head.

“Besides,” Carmilla interjected before her mother could respond. “Will is more than capable. And the team at SnarkGames doesn’t need me to be successful. We’ve built quite a group, and Lola Perry could run things in her sleep.”

As Carmilla said it, she knew it was true. Will would make a perfect CEO of LK Tech. And the success of SnarkGames had very little to do with her and everything to do with the people that worked there. Even the interns—who were originally brought in to pump out a few ideas for cheap—were smart, dedicated, and invaluable. 

Everything would be just fine without her.

Her mother was not convinced.

“Make up your mind soon. The job will not just be sitting here whenever you decide you’re done playing house with the intern,” her mother said, while standing and gathering her things. When she reached the door to leave, she turned, and locked eyes with her daughter. “You’ve disappointed me, Carmilla.”

Carmilla watched as her mother left, and she kept waiting to feel the wave of guilt. But it never came. Something welled up inside her in its place. Something more like relief.

_I need to go find Laura._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhh I put an end number of chapters on this bad boy. Only two more to go!
> 
> Also, how about season 3 act 1?? I'm already loving it. And in honor of Papa Hollis appearing in the show, I decided to throw him into this chapter :)
> 
> p.s. My fiancee and I got featured in a super cool wedding blog. If you like adorable things and awesome feminist publications, feel free to go check it out: [catalyst wedding company](http://www.catalystwedco.com/blog/2016/8/24/real-couples-a-debacle-engagement-michellecourtney).


	24. I know.

Carmilla navigated through the crowded street, changing lanes at every opening. She had to remind herself to breathe the closer she got to Laura’s house—her anxiety increasing with every passing block.

_Music. Music will help._

She grabbed her phone and hit shuffle on her top playlist, smiling to herself as the familiar melody filled the space. With the help of the music, her nerves settled as she turned onto Laura’s street, pulling into the first available space to park.

_Alright. Deep breaths._

Carmilla inhaled deeply and then shook out her limbs. She was somehow more nervous to go talk to Laura than she had been to talk to her mother. It was time to lay all of her cards out on the table and she wasn’t sure how she felt about that. She’d already somewhat broken the news to her mother, which went better than expected. Now she just had to tell Laura that she wasn’t going to be taking over one of the biggest companies in the country. She wasn’t going to be ultra successful or continue to stockpile mass amounts of wealth. She had no plans on the horizon and could devote as much time as she wanted to Laura and their relationship.

_Wait…shit. That sounds super creepy and u-haul-y._

As Carmilla was berating herself, she heard a light knock on her window. Her eyes widened as she took in the sight of a confused Laura, motioning for Carmilla to roll the window down.

“Hey…what are you doing here?” Laura asked tentatively.

“How did I beat you here?” Carmilla asked, taking note of Laura’s flushed skin and sweat dampened hair. “Oh shit, did you walk home?”

“Uh…yeah. I took an uber to your place last night, so I didn’t have my bike,” Laura answered as she grabbed the hem of her shirt and pulled it away from her body, fanning her torso. “Do you want to come inside?” she continued.

Carmilla nodded, rolling up her window as she grabbed her phone, wallet, and keys. She followed Laura up the sidewalk to her front door. In all the months she’d known the girl she hadn’t once stepped foot in her house. When Laura swung the door open and Carmilla got her first glimpse of the house, she couldn’t help but smile. It was so Laura.

“My room’s this way. I’m not sure if my roommates are home…” Laura said by way of explanation as she led Carmilla through the living room and toward the back of the house. Carmilla perched on the edge of Laura’s bed as Laura hastily picked up the strewn papers and empty mugs that littered her desk and chair. Once she’d made a suitable surface, she sat and spun the chair until she was facing Carmilla.

“So…how’d it go?”

________________________

Laura felt like her mind was racing right along with her mind—so many scenarios were cycling through her head. She was shocked by how clear her voice sounded as she asked the question that she’d been dying to know the answer to since she left Carmilla’s apartment. She watched as Carmilla mulled the question over, her own brain coming up with answers in anticipation.

_We’re over, Cupcake._

_We can’t date anymore, and you’re fired._

_I can’t see you anymore…now or ever._

“It went well enough,” Carmilla answered, shocking Laura.

_What??_

“Really? Does she hate me? Did I ruin your chances of taking over for her? Is the app launch scrapped? Can we not see each other anymore?” Laura rattled off the questions in one breath, her pitch getting higher with each one.

“Hey, hold on,” Carmilla said, standing and making her way over to Laura. “It’s okay. Everything is going to be okay.”

Laura closed her eyes and relished the closeness as Carmilla smoothed her hair. She opened her eyes as she felt a hand on her chin, coaxing her to make eye contact, and when she did, her breath got caught in her throat. Not only did Carmilla look beautiful—she looked unburdened. Normally Laura could see the gears turning in her head and knew that she was searching for the exact right words, considering how anything she did or said would be construed. No doubt a result of the constant grooming of a future leader. For the first time, Laura saw a peacefulness in Carmilla.

“Yeah?” she asked, not sure if she could trust her voice to utter more.

“Laura, I’m not going to do it. Take the job, I mean. You were right, it doesn’t make me happy. I thought it did, but…” Carmilla looked terrified as she whispered the next words, “I don’t think I even knew what happiness was before you.”

Laura swallowed the lump in her throat, cupping Carmilla’s cheeks and bringing their foreheads together. She opened her mouth to respond, but the words never came.

_Fuck it. I’ll show her._

She brushed her lips against Carmilla’s—hesitant at first—trying to show her that she felt the same. The hesitance didn’t last as Carmilla pulled Laura upright and pressed their bodies together. Laura let all of her hopes spill out into the kiss. Today was her someday. Her ‘maybes’ now a resounding ‘yes.’

_____________________

Carmilla pulled Laura against her, her hips rocking forward with the action. She let her right hand drift up to trace a gentle line along Laura’s jaw before she cupped the back of her neck, swallowing Laura’s moan as their tongues met. 

The hands that were planted firmly on Carmilla’s hips were now passing in front of her face, breaking her lips from Laura’s as she watched the girl shed her shirt. Carmilla admired Laura’s heaving chest and let her hands travel down to unclasp the girl’s bra.

“Not fair,” Laura whined. “You always have more clothes on than I do.”

Carmilla smirked and pinched Laura’s side, eliciting a squeal. “So do something about it, then,” she challenged. With a wicked glint in her eye, Laura spun Carmilla with impressive strength and pushed her against the wall. She made quick work of the jean buttons before peeling them off, crouching down to help Carmilla step out. She traced the length of both legs from her crouched position before hooking her fingers under Carmilla’s underwear.

Carmilla watched as Laura locked eyes with her from her spot on the ground, her knees weakening as Laura gently tugged down on the fabric. Carmilla shuddered as Laura traced her tongue up from her knee, ghosting it across her thighs, and up past her abdomen as she stood.

“Sit,” Laura commanded, as she ushered Carmilla back toward her desk chair, pressing down on her shoulders. Carmilla shivered as her bare skin settled onto the cold surface of the wooden chair. “Hands up,” Laura continued once Carmilla was sitting.

Laura moved around to the back of the chair, whispering into Carmilla’s ear as she reached in front of her body and grabbed the hem of her shirt, pulling it off in one swift motion. “Good girl,” she whispered into her ear as she tossed the shirt aside. Those words warmed Carmilla—the chill of the chair forgotten by the heat of the moment.

_Please._

“Please, Laura,” she begged, eliciting a chuckle from Laura as the girl unclasped her bra and pushed it off her shoulders and onto the floor.

“Patience, cutie,” Laura joked, tracing delicate lines across Carmilla’s collarbones. Carmilla sighed as she felt Laura’s bare chest press against her back, her skin prickling as Laura palmed her chest before dropping lower for a teasing swipe. Carmilla bucked at the small bit of contact, her hips chasing after Laura’s hand.

“Someone’s ready,” Laura whispered again, directly into her ear.

Carmilla didn’t argue. Instead, she leaned her head back and chased after Laura’s mouth with her own. Laura was too quick though, stepping around the chair and kneeling between Carmilla’s legs.

“You know,” Laura said, “I’ve had a few fantasies about you at your desk…”

_God…_

Carmilla closed her eyes and hummed as images of Laura taking her in her office…on her desk flooded to mind.

“Oh?” she rasped. “Care to elaborate?”

______________________

Laura admired Carmilla from her perch between the girl’s legs. She pressed open palms against the insides of her knees, encouraging Carmilla to spread for her. Laura licked her lips in anticipation, eager to taste.

“Well,” she answered. “I always pictured you working away while I was underneath your desk…doing other things…”

Carmilla gasped as Laura’s tongue made contact with her clit, her hands shooting from her sides and into Laura’s hair.

“Ah ah…” Laura said, chucking as she pulled away to scold Carmilla. “You’re supposed to be working, remember? No touching.”

Carmilla gripped the edges of the chair until her knuckles turned white, nodding fervently at the instruction.

“Won’t happen again,” she said in a serious tone.

Laura smiled as she ran her tongue through once again, moaning as Carmilla’s hips surged upward, desperate for more contact. She quickened her pace, opting for short, focused pressure—Carmilla’s hitched breaths and small moans spurring her along. Laura brought her right hand up and teased at Carmilla’s entrance, waiting for the verbal cue she knew was coming.

“Laura.” Carmilla whimpered, rocking forward onto Laura’s waiting fingers. Laura smiled, and breathed out a stream of cool air as she pressed two fingers deep into Carmilla, unleashing a strangled moan.

Carmilla’s hips rocked with every thrust—Laura’s tongue never slowing as she pumped her fingers harder and harder. She stood from her kneeling position as she felt Carmilla getting closer, the new angle allowing her to curl her fingers to the spot she knew would do the trick. Laura used her left hand to grip Carmilla’s shoulder, bringing her in for a searing kiss—swallowing her moan as she came.

“Jesus…fucking…Christ,” Carmilla panted as Laura traced feather light fingers over her clit. “Stop. Stop. You’re going to kill me, woman,” she laughed, pulling Laura onto her lap and placing kisses along her collarbone.

“Wow. Just…wow,” Laura said in response—grinning slyly. “That was maybe better than I imagined it would be.” 

____________________

Carmilla smirked. “Oh? Fantasy me wasn’t up to snuff?”

Before Laura could answer, Carmilla pushed the girl up into a standing position from her spot on the chair.

“Take those off,” she said, pointing to Laura’s still pant-clad legs.

Laura’s hands raced to the buttons at lightening speed, her eyes darkening with renewed desire.

“Whoa now, cupcake…slow,” Carmilla said, her eyes trailing the length of Laura’s exposed torso down to the now trembling hands fumbling over the zipper. Laura huffed but acquiesced—slowing her movements and swaying her hips for added effect.

Carmilla bit her lip as Laura looped her thumbs through the waistband of her jeans and pulled them down at an excruciating pace. Once they were pooled at her feet, Laura stepped out of them and closer to the seated girl.

Carmilla exhaled as Laura closed the space, her eyes taking in the sight of Laura teasing her fingers underneath her lacy underwear, dipping lower until Carmilla was sure the girl was touching herself.

“Jesus, cupcake,” she said, shivering with desire. “Don’t stop!” she said frantically when Laura went to pull her hand out.

Laura smirked in response, straddling the girl as she took a seat on her lap—never stopping her circular movements.

“Oh, do you like this?” Laura said innocently, pressing her exposed chest into Carmilla’s waiting mouth as she began pressing firmer against herself.

Carmilla’s throaty moan sounded like a growl as she took Laura’s nipple into her mouth, biting gently. She watched as Laura’s back arched from the action.

Shaking her head as she realized her hands were still gripping the chair when a naked girl was grinding herself on her lap— _stupid, Carmilla_ —she placed both hands on top of Laura’s flexed thighs. She pressed hard as she slid her hands back around to Laura’s ass, coaxing her to grind against her.

Carmilla reveled the feel of Laura’s flexing legs as she rocked back and forth. Deciding she’d had enough of just watching, she trailed her right hand around the girl’s rocking hips, pulling aside her underwear as she pressed two fingers into Laura’s entrance.

Carmilla watched as Laura rolled her head back in response—her mouth opening wide but no noise accompanying it. Laura snapped her head back down, locking her free hand into Carmilla’s hair as she pushed their foreheads together. Her strokes against her clit now furiously paced.

Carmilla couldn’t contain her smile as she watched Laura’s orgasm wrack through her body.

“You. Are. So. Beautiful.” she said as she gently removed her fingers, placing a feather light kiss against Laura’s temple.

Laura hummed as she collapsed against Carmilla’s chest, enveloping her in a hug.

“So…” she said after a few minutes, “you’re quitting your job, huh?”

“I think so…” Carmilla said, tracing light patterns against Laura’s exposed back. “In more important news,” she added, leaning back until their eyes locked, “I love you.”

The smile she was greeted with as the words escaped her lips made her decision for her. She was definitely quitting her job, and she was going to do everything she could to see that smile every day Laura was gracious enough to keep her around.

“I love you too, you know”

_I know._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One chapter left??? It's almost time, you guys!
> 
> Hopefully you all enjoyed that. I have not yet written the last chapter (yeah, I'm not the best planner), but I'll try to get it posted relatively soon. There will be a super small time jump.
> 
> As always, thanks so much for reading and for sticking with this little story for the last few months. I had no idea anyone would even read it, so your response has been beyond awesome :)
> 
> P.S. I'm currently tossing around some ideas in my head for the next story I'll write. If there's something you want to see or if you have any suggestions, let me know!


	25. I Can Work With That

“Are you nervous?” Carmilla asked as she leaned against the door frame.

“Why would I be nervous?” Laura asked, turning her attention away from her mascara to narrow her eyes at Carmilla.

She received a shrug in response. “Oh no reason. You’re just releasing your very first app today,” Carmilla said as she swept into the bathroom and enveloped Laura in a hug. “I’m so proud of you,” she whispered before pulling away and slapping Laura’s butt. “Now get ready! We don’t have all night,” Carmilla called over her shoulder as she jogged away. 

The last three weeks had been a whirlwind; days filled with frantic app development, nights engaged in conversations about Carmilla’s future plans, and mornings spent cuddled in one another’s beds exchanging lingering kisses. Everything they’d worked for, all the decisions they’d made and the hurdles they’d overcome were all to get to this point. Tonight was the SnarkGames anniversary and launch party, and the night that Carmilla would talk to her mother again.

Laura finished applying her makeup and then gave her reflection a double thumbs up.

_You did it, Hollis._

______________________

Carmilla tapped her thumb against the steering wheel as she navigated the familiar streets. Her knee bounced lightly, her mouth moving noiselessly as she ran through her speech in her head. Sure, she’d given hundreds of speeches during her tenure at the company, but this one weighed heavily on her. It wasn’t just for her or for some big wig investors. This one was for Laura, and she was determined to make it perfect.

“Hey,” Laura’s gentle voice pulled her back to reality. “You’re going to be great,” she continued, stilling Carmilla’s leg with a warm hand. “You’re Carmilla Karnstein. A little speech is like breathing to you. I should be the one freaking out,” Laura joked.

Carmilla smiled and placed her hand over Laura’s.

“We’ll both be great,” she responded, squeezing Laura’s hand for added measure. Laura turned her hand so their fingers were interlaced and drew lazy circles with her thumb. Carmilla cleared her throat and assumed a serious tone, “and besides, it’s open bar, so if we both tank it, we can at least drown our sorrows.”

“Aw, there’s my girl! Always the optimist,” Laura joked pulling her hand away and swatting Carmilla’s thigh as she laughed.

______________________

A large group was already gathered around the bar when Laura and Carmilla entered, with the interns, of course, all taking advantage of the free drinks.

“Little Nerd!” Kirsch called, beckoning Laura over with eager, flailing arms.

Laura chuckled as she heard Carmilla scoff to her right. She turned to her and mumbled a quick apology. Carmilla waved her off. “ Go. Have fun, cupcake. Tonight is your night,” she added with a wink. Laura skipped off toward her friends and tried to conceal her smile. She still hadn’t told her friends about her relationship with Carmilla, which was something they both agreed would be better left until after the internship was over.

Betty slid past Kirsch and grabbed Laura by the elbows, whistling as she examined her dress.

“Wow, Hollis! You clean up nice,” she said before spinning the girl and pulling her toward the bar. “Did you come here with Carmilla,” Betty asked in a hushed tone as they made their way through the crowd.

“What?” Laura coughed out as they approached the bar. Her coughs continued as she waved the bartender over. She managed to croak out the word “water” at the bartender and guzzled the cup down once it was poured. She cleared her throat and turned to a thoroughly confused Betty.

“No, I did not come here with Carmilla,” she said with as much composure as she could muster after her stunning display. 

“Oooo-kay…” Betty responded as she tilted her head to the side. “Lesbians are weird,” she added. “I’d swear there was something going on with the way you two look at each other, but I know I know! It’s damaging to the community to assume that two gay women can’t be friends,” Betty said in her well practiced Laura Hollis voice.

Laura rolled her eyes in response and grabbed Betty by the arm. She pulled her through the crowd and into a secluded corner.

“Betty, I swear to god if you tell anyone I will murder you…” Laura said, looking around the vicinity to make sure they were alone before continuing, “but yeah, Carmilla and I are seeing each other. I was going to start telling people after the program is finished.”

Betty squealed in response. “Oh my god, Hollis! You’ve been holding out on me! Okay you have to tell me all the details. This is like criminal that I didn’t know sooner.”

“Listen, I’ll tell you details and stuff, but I need you to keep it cool until everyone knows. I don’t want it to seem like I got special treatment or anything, and I still want people to respect me even if I’m not going to be working here in a couple weeks.”

Betty raised two fingers in a mock solute. “Scouts honor,” she said before pulling Laura in for a hug. “Seriously though, well done, Hollis. Carmilla is a hottie.”

Laura scanned the room and smiled softly when she spotted Carmilla chatting with a group of developers. “Yeah,” she responded. “She is.”

____________________

“Carmilla, you ready?” Perry asked as she approached the group and tapped Carmilla on the shoulder.

“Yes. One moment,” Carmilla responded, looking around the room for Laura. When their eyes met, she couldn’t conceal her smile. Laura was standing in a corner with Betty Spielsdorf looking radiant as ever. She tilted her head toward the stage and mouthed “you ready?” Laura nodded and whispered something to Betty before heading to the stage. Carmilla turned back to Perry. “Okay. Let’s go,” she said with a smile.

Carmilla followed Perry to the small stage at the center of the room and made her way to the podium. She waited for the noise in the room to die down before leaning forward toward the microphone. “Congratulations!” she boomed to thunderous applause. “We made it two full years,” she continued to a few scattered cheers and raised glasses. “I know when I set out with this startup, I wasn’t sure if we’d be successful or if we’d amount to much, but I can say now, without a doubt, that I had no reason to fear. Our team here at SnarkGames is world class, and I hope you all feel the same as I do when I say that I consider this a second family.”

Carmilla took a moment to look around the room, taking note of the familiar faces that really had come to feel like family to her. Perry, her ever-reliable right hand woman, was the picture of grace standing to the side of the stage, her eyes misty with unshed tears. LaFontaine, another fixture in Carmilla’s office life, stood nearby with their hand resting lightly on Perry’s shoulder. And countless others stood, huddled in groups with their eyes locked on the stage, waiting for her next words.

“So tonight, let’s celebrate each other. I’m so proud to say that I got to be a part of this delightfully wacky family, and I am going to miss each and every one of you.”

Puzzled looks and hushed murmurs spread through the crowd at Carmilla’s words. Perry stepped forward closer to the stage, drawing Carmilla’s eyes toward her. “Everything okay?” she mouthed, clearly confused.

“Maybe this is a dramatic way to go about this, but I’ve always had a flair for the dramatics…” Carmilla continued, turning back toward the crowd with a smile. “I’m leaving SnarkGames, effective next month to pursue some personal goals of mine. I know that this company will continue to be successful long after I’m gone—hopefully under the leadership of our very own Lola Perry,” Carmilla added, turning to the girl who was now frozen by the side of the stage, staring at her with wide eyes. “What do you say, Perry?”

The crowd erupted in applause as Perry gaped at Carmilla, her mouth opening and closing but unable to form words.

“I’ll take that as a yes?” Carmilla guessed, eliciting an enthusiastic nod. “Well, there you go. I can rest easy now knowing that you’ll all be in very capable hands. Enough about me, though. Here’s to you!” Carmilla finished, raising the champagne flute that was resting on the podium and looking out over the crowd.

The room buzzed with excitement and the clinking of glass. Once the noise died down, Carmilla continued.

“And now, I’d like to invite Laura Hollis up for another big announcement,” Carmilla said, motioning for Laura to join her on stage. Her smile was wide as ever as she watched the girl—her nervousness palpable—clamber up the steps. “You’ve got this,” she whispered to the girl when she finally made it to the podium, backing away in the process so Laura was the main focus.

_____________________

Laura gulped loudly as Carmilla called her name. She forced her feet to move as she made her way up onto the stage. Her mind raced frantically through her prepared speech as she closed the space and made it to the podium.

_How am I supposed to follow that?_

Carmilla’s words of encouragement as she approached the microphone calmed her nerves enough for her to step forward and begin, though the words she’d prepared still escaped her.

“Hi,” she squeaked. _Smooth Hollis._ “Well I’m not going to lie and say that it’s going to be easy to follow that speech,” Laura said, smiling at the girl who was standing off to the side of the stage. “…But I guess I have to try, right?” Laura joked, earning a few chuckles from the still excited crowd. “Not only is today the company’s anniversary, but it’s also the day we release our newest app to the world. So many of the people in this room worked so hard to make this day a reality, and I want to thank every one of you. I never thought four months ago that I’d be in this position. Maybe that’s why I didn’t have a better speech planned…” Laura admitted with a blush and breathy chuckle. “But lack of preparation aside and with no further ado, let’s launch this thing!” she yelled excitedly as she stepped over to the laptop set up on stage.

Laura clicked the “release” button and then chuckled at the popup. _Of course._ She stepped back to the podium with even redder cheeks.

“Well I guess that was a little anti-climactic,” she chuckled as she turned around to read the words still projected on the screen. “Your app will be available to the public within 24 hours. Well…” she looked to Carmilla and shrugged her shoulders before leaning back toward the mic, “I guess we’ll have to continue this party all night!” Her words were met with cheers. The DJ took the cue to turn the music back up.

Laura laughed and narrowed her eyes slightly as Carmilla approached. “You could have told me there was a waiting period after release,” she challenged.

“Sorry, cutie,” Carmilla said with a smirk. “I thought you knew.”

“Mmhm. Sure. Well I think I need a drink after that. Do you want something?” Laura asked.

“Yes, but I need to talk to Curly Sue,” Carmilla responded pointing her thumb to Perry, who still stood at the edge of the stage.

Laura chuckled and shook her head. “Okay, I’ll be over by the bar.”

____________________

Carmilla’s nerves resurfaced as she made her way to Perry. She knew the girl didn’t like surprises, and yet she threw a huge one her way in front of the entire company.

_I really should have talked to her before._

“You really should have talked to me before, Carmilla,” Perry chided, pulling her down from the stage to a less crowded area of the building.

_See. Knew it._

“Okay, okay, can you lighten up on the grip?” Carmilla complained once they were out of earshot of anyone else.

“Sorry. But my goodness, Carmilla! You can’t just spring something like that on me!” Perry hissed.

“So, are you saying you don’t want the job?” Carmilla countered, laughing as she watched Perry’s full range of emotions flit across her face.

“Of course I’m not saying that! It’s a dream job, and it means everything to me that you trust me with this. Just, next time, maybe warn a person? You know I get anxious.”

“You’re right. I’m sorry. Next time I step down from the helm of a company and pass you the reins, I will make sure to give you a heads up,” Carmilla joked.

“You are insufferable!” Perry huffed, earning more chuckles from Carmilla.

“Congrats, Red. I know you’ll be great.”

_____________________

“What a speech, huh?” Kirsch asked when Laura approached the group of interns. “I really thought she was going to go work for her mom.”

“Yes, I have to say, this whole evening is nothing at all like what I expected,” Mattie added. Most of the interns nodded in agreement, except for Betty, who looked at Laura with a knowing smirk.

Laura narrowed her eyes at Betty in response, silently thanking the universe that no one noticed the exchange.

“So anyway…” Laura interjected, trying to move the topic of discussion away from Carmilla. “Our internships are pretty much done. What is everyone going to do now?”

The group went around filling each other in on interviews they each had lined up and potential leads they were going to look into. Mattie, in particular, seemed to have everything figured out. Laura stayed quiet throughout the sharing session and only spoke up when Betty asked her directly what her plans were.

“Um…well I actually already have an offer,” she said, blushing.

“You’re just full of secrets today, Hollis!” Betty exclaimed.

“What does that—“ Kirsch began before Laura stomped on his toe. “Ow! What was that for?”

“Sorry, Kirsch! Accident…” Laura responded, clearing her throat before continuing, “Now what was I saying? Oh that’s right, I just got an offer from a really cool company over in East Austin. They create software for learning institutions—think gamification in an educational setting.”

“And who’s surprised that our resident nerd intern will go on continuing to achieve nerdy greatness?”

Laura jumped at the interruption from behind her, much to everyone in the group’s amusement.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you,” Carmilla said under her breath before greeting the rest of the interns. “And you all are just the people I wanted to see. I know Laura here already has a new gig lined up, but I wanted to come and let the rest of you know that we’ve all been very impressed by the work put out by this group. I just spoke with Perry and confirmed that if any of you want to stay on after graduation, there will be a full time position waiting for you.”

“Dude, no way!” Kirsch yelled, while the rest of the group smiled broadly at the news and thanked Carmilla graciously.

“Don’t thank me. You all earned it,” Carmilla said in response. “Now, could I steal Laura away for a minute or two?”

Laura followed Carmilla out of the building and into the alley. Carmilla turned once they were outside and pulled Laura by both hands toward her.

“Hey,” Laura whispered, breathlessly as their bodies met and Carmilla’s hands clasped behind her back.

“Hey,” Carmilla husked back, leaning forward until their foreheads were touching. “I’ve missed you tonight.” 

“Carm, we’ve literally been in the same room this whole time,” Laura teased.

“I know. I know. I just want you to myself though,” Carmilla whined.

“Well that can certainly be arranged, Boss,” Laura said with a devious glint in her eye. “Or wait…I guess I can’t call you that anymore. What should I go with now?”

“Hmm…” Carmilla hummed, rubbing her chin as she deliberated. “How about ‘My Love’?”

Laura captured her lips in a sweet kiss, smiling as she pulled away.

“I can work with that.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The final chapter! We did it!
> 
> Thank you to everyone that stuck with this as I wrote it. Your support has been so appreciated. And to any people that just started reading this now that it's complete, welcome! 
> 
> I'm overwhelmed by the positivity on here. You are all awesome :)
> 
> If you want to find me on tumblr, I'm detrimentalsentimental.


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